Friendship Love and Loneliness
by KarinXToshiro
Summary: It's a week after Seto meets the silver haired girl, and what happens when he meets a strange girl with no memories of her past? And a lonely robot? Not only that, but there's a new enemy lurking in the shadows...NO YAOI, rated T just because. DISCONTINUED.
1. Chapter 1

**Hi everyone ^^ If you were looking for Yaoi, turn back NOW! I don't own Fragile Dreams or its characters, but I own my OCs and everything about them! Hope you enjoy! BTW, this is set around a month after he found the silver haired girl, no, there is no glass cage or P.F or Crow or Sai…Yet.**

_How long has it been since I've been alone? Too long…It feels as if all contact I ever made with a human was just a dream…That silver-haired girl…I never found her, but…I won't give up looking!_

Seto shielded his eyes from the blistering sunlight as he staggered across the rubble, a shard of glass occasionally shattering under his footsteps. He had been walking for days, and it was certainly not easy in weather like this. The warmth resulted in sweat which worked like glue as his hair stuck to his forehead. He had been walking for days, and he did not even know what exactly for! He hadn't found any clues that might lead him to the mysterious girl's location, so what was even the point of it all?

Seto closed his eyes, trying to shake all negative thoughts out of his head, _No; I mustn't think like that…If I don't find her, she'll be all alone…_And so he continued through the rubble of collapsed buildings, occasionally flinching in pain when a pointy stone dug into his foot through his shoes.

It felt like hours as he continued through the field of rubble, there had previously been a series of heavy earthquakes and tremors, and unfortunately the village hadn't coped too well. Pieces of furniture smashed beyond repair were scattered around and glass from windows and bottles glistened in the sun.

Seto gasped as he suddenly fell forward, clenching his teeth as multiple shards of glass and other sharp objects pierced his skin and tore his clothing. He turned his head to see what it was that had tripped him over, widening his eyes when he saw…A body?

He sat there, frozen in shock, trying to determine whether or not the girl lying before him was dead or alive. After a few moments, the startled teenager finally managed to stir up the courage to tentatively reach out. He let out a sigh of relieve when he felt that her cheek was warm. He hesitated for a moment before taking back his hand and examining his hand, _It feels like that time…With the silver haired girl…_

He closed his eyes for a moment before opening them and looking the girl up and down. She had long, ash-blonde hair that was spread out like a fan around her and smooth, pale skin. He could not see her eyes as they were firmly shut.

Now that he knew she was thankfully alive, Seto did the obvious thing and attempted to wake her. He shook her gently, frowning when she stayed still and limp, not showing any signs of waking. After trying a couple of times, Seto finally gave up, standing up with a sigh and looking down at her.

_I can't just leave her here…_He thought to himself as he desperately tried to think of other ways to wake her, he suddenly felt as if the silver haired girl wasn't important any more, he had another person, a human, right in front of him now…_I'm sick of being lonely. _

Seto took a deep breath before kneeling down and attempting to pick the girl up. She was heavier than she looked. After many, many tries of carrying the unconscious girl in different ways, Seto finally gave up, sitting next to her, gasping for breath. How could he be so out of shape when he was fighting ghosts all the time? He frowned as he regained his breath, trying to think of another way to rescue her.

Whilst thinking he noticed the strange clothing she was in, some sort of hospital top? He shook his head, _No, that's not important. _He grabbed her arm in another failed attempt to pick her up, which resulted in him nearly stumbling and falling backwards. After gaining his balance and setting her down again, he glanced over his shoulder at what he would have fallen on.

The decision not to try that again permanently stuck in his head when he noticed the pile of sharp objects that lay where he would have fallen. His eyes soon wandered back to the girl on the floor, which soon widened when he saw what was underneath her fringe, which had fallen off of her face with the struggle. He knelt down again to get a closer look, furrowing his eyebrows at the large scars on the mysterious girl's forehead. It looked like she'd gotten a severe head injury in the past…But it was quite well healed now.

Seto sighed, if it hadn't been so well healed it would probably have been the reason why she's unconscious. He stared at her, frowning, _I guess there's no other choice…_He thought to himself, _I'm going to have to stay here and look after her…_

* * *

><p>That night was quiet, the usual call of the birds and cricket were absent tonight so the only audible sound was the crackling of the fire Seto had set up beside him and the sleeping girl. The firelight danced on her sleeping face, her breathing calm and even. Seto had done his best to find something to keep her warm, but the best he could do were some torn rags. Still, they were better than nothing. It was amazing how fast the temperature could change,<p>

The temperature had dropped drastically as the sun sank lower into the sky and once its light had disappeared completely, Seto could feel the goose bumps under his heavy coat.

He sighed as he sat back and watched the stars whilst black clouds slowly drifted across the moon, giving the night an eerie atmosphere. He had by far given up all ideas of any sleep that night, he had grown used to the chorus of the animals around him, much louder now that there were no humans to shoo them, so now the silence didn't feel right. Maybe the animals were catching up on some much needed sleep, like he should have been.

Seto frowned slightly when the silence was interrupted, interrupted by the growling of his stomach. He slipped his backpack off of his shoulders and rummaged through it in search of a snack. The crackling sound of a packet was music to ears and he pulled it out, not pausing to look what it was before opening it and eating the contents hungrily but still neatly. The packet was soon empty and Seto had no choice but to put up with the remaining hunger that was too stubborn to leave as he sat there.

Somehow the snack had made him even hungrier, but, alas, there was barely anything left in his backpack that was edible, and he needed to save all that remained as if his like depended on it. Well, actually, his life did depend on it.

Seto sighed before lying back, using his hands as a pillow as he once again star-gazed. The moon was beautiful and full tonight; the moonlight it emitted was more than enough to see clearly, with the assistance of the stars.

It was nice, there seemed to be less light pollution now that the streetlights and such were no more, there was now a clear view of the night sky, every single tiny speck that was a star was visible, it was a stunning sight. A yawn escaped Seto's mouth as his eyelids suddenly felt as if a 1-tonne weight had been strapped to them, and before another thought could cross his mind, he found himself drifting into sleep.

Seto felt sunlight on him as his consciousness returned. His eyes remained closed for a moment as he remembered the events of the past day, springing up in surprise when he remembered the girl. Without a second thought, he immediately attempted once more to wake her, as expected though, the attempt was in vain. The girl didn't even flinch after being shaken.

Seto sighed again, _Just how long is it going to be until she wakes up?_

* * *

><p><em>The days went by like minutes then…I wasn't exactly sure just how many had gone by, but I knew it had to be over two weeks by now…And as before…The girl didn't even move. It's as if she's dead. I'm worried. She'll die if she doesn't wake up soon…She can't eat or drink like that…I went to sleep full of worry again that night, fearful thoughts flowing through my mind. <em>

Seto opened his eyes once again, lazily lifting his hand to shield his exposed eyes from the harsh sun above. His eyes out of routine wandered slowly to the spot where the girl usually lay and felt his stomach lurch. He shot up immediately, she was gone! _Where is she? _Seto thought to himself desperately. His panicked thoughts were interrupted when he felt a gentle tap on his shoulder. He immediately spun around to face the person who had touched him, widening his eyes with a mix between joy and surprise at who it was,

"Have you been looking after me while I was asleep?" She asked, her glistening emerald eyes shining at him themselves along with her lips as she spoke. Her voice was kind and bubbly and her hands were shyly behind her back.

Seto felt his tensed shoulders relax before closing his eyes and nodding slowly, taking in what he was seeing, _She's…Finally awake._

**And that, ladies and gentleman, is the end of that chapter! I'm really happy if you're still reading this, because with character and story design, this has actually taken hours to plan x.x I have a picture of a later-to-come OC on deviantart, so feel free to look! Link's on my profile! Reviews are always appreciated!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Hi If you are still reading this, then thank you so much! Remember, I don't own Fragile Dreams or anything about it but I do own any OC's that appear, don't forget it!**

"So…You don't remember anything?" Seto asked, staring at the strange girl sitting cross legged across from him. His face was burning red as he made sure to keep his eyes locked onto her face; sitting like that whilst wearing only a short night-top was not a good idea for a girl.

She replied with a nod, not one bit worried about her sitting position, "Yeah. It's…Weird. When I woke up…I couldn't remember anything about myself." Her lips twisted into a smile as she chuckled, "I don't even know how long I was asleep for."

"I don't know how long you were sleeping before I found you, but it's been weeks since then…" Seto explained to her, beginning to feel a bit un-appreciated with his efforts when she just replied with a bubbly,

"Oh, really?"

"Mm-hm." Seto nodded. He froze when the girl spoke again,

"So, what are your plans now?" She asked cheerily before opening her eyes and pointing to a beautiful butterfly with white wings, slightly tinted with green, "Hey isn't it pretty?" she asked quietly to Seto as the small insect fluttered onto her outstretched hand, it's wings still flapping. Seto sighed in relief as the butterfly saved him; he wasn't actually sure what to do next. Go to the red tower or search for the silver haired girl or what? He widened his eyes as he remembered. _The silver haired girl! I almost forgot! _He thought to himself.

"Hey, are you alright?" The butterfly flew off when she leaned forward in concern for the boy who had looked after her during her slumber, "You look pale."

Seto gulped as he returned to reality, nodding quickly before shuffling back. She was definitely way too close! His eyes wandered back to her,

"Hey, hey! I just remembered!" she suddenly exclaimed excitedly, her face lighting up, A spark of hope immediately lit up inside of Seto as he waited eagerly for what she was about to say, _She remembered something! _She paused for a second before suddenly shouting, "I forgot to ask your name!"

Seto was struck by disappointment, although he didn't let it show. He forced an awkward smile onto his face, "It's…Seto." He replied to the enthusiastic girl, the latter smiling as she repeated him.

"Seto. Se-to. What a nice name…" She sighed to herself, "I wonder what mine is…" she wondered as she leaned backwards onto her hands, staring up at the white sky as camouflaged clouds slowly drifted by. "Oh, no! I don't mind really!" She said quickly after noticing Seto's worried expression, "A name is…Just a word I guess!"

"I'm sure you have a nice name too." Seto replied, ignoring what she had said last, "You just don't know it." The nameless girl was mildly surprised by this, her lips parting slightly before they shut firmly again.

"Yeah." She agreed with a gentle smile, returning her eyes to the sky, "You're right, Seto." She closed her eyes in relaxation, the sun warm on her face. Seto was just about to relax too, slowly closing his eyes before they snapped wide open again at the girl's exclamation,

"Oh! I almost forgot! So, what are our plans?" she demanded with a laugh, smiling widely. Seto stayed quiet for a second with only "Umm…"'s and "Er…"'s before he finally answered,

"Well…Uh…I had two choices. I was going to go to…that red tower in the distance." Seto replied awkwardly, pointing to the glowing red giant in the distance, automatically wrapping his other hand around the silver locket dangling from his neck, "Or I was going to search for…A silver haired girl that I met before."

"Hmm." The girl mumbled, staring up into the sky for a second in thought before suddenly giggling, closing her eyes, "You're funny!" She commented, Seto looked down, not sure whether this was a compliment or not, "What would you want to go to the tower for?" she pressed on from answers, still chuckling,

"Because…" Seto started, not removing his eyes from the ground as his hand wrapped around the locket even tighter, "I was told to by someone very important to me."

"Eh? And where are they now?" The blonde asked; a bright smile still on her face. It started to fade, though, as she noticed Seto's expression, "Seto?"

"He…He's dead." Seto replied sorrowfully, the girl's eyes widening as she was struck by surprise. She was definitely not expecting an answer like that. She was a bit stuck for words for a second just uttering a series of stutters and stammers before gulping,

"I-I see…" Was all she seemed to manage. The atmosphere seemed to have changed completely, and they sat there in dead silence for minutes, the only audible sounds being the rustling of the leaves, the scuttling of debris being carried by the breeze and the bird chirping in the sky. The nameless girl's eyes wandered from the sky to the surroundings whilst Seto's stayed firmly glued to the rocky ground. The long silence was finally broken when the girl spoke again, a smile forced onto her face as she chuckled awkwardly,

"So…Why are you searching for this 'silver haired girl'?" she asked, trying to lift the mood at least a little bit. Seto paused for a minute,

"I was all alone after he died…But then I met her." He replied finally, the girl raising an eyebrow,

"Why isn't she with you, then? Did you scare her off or something? I advise you not to be too obsessive or act like a stalker, it makes us feel uncomfortable."

"No. I don't know why, but she…Suddenly ran away. I was so lonely; I had to go after her." Seto explained to the girl before him, who didn't understand this at all.

"I don't get it…" She sighed, looking down at the ground as she drew in the dirt with her finger, "Why would you want to find her so much? She's just one person…What's so great about having one friend?" Seto started to make out a messy mud-doodle of two stick figures, who, or at least so he thought, were linking arms, "You can survive on your own…" she lifted her hand before carefully picking the dirt out from under her long nails, her emerald eyes wandering to Seto's, brown melting into green as they stared at each other.

"It's hard to explain…You have to feel it, I guess." Seto broke the eye contact, his eyes flicking to the side. This was starting to confuse the girl even further,

"I still don't get it. Why would you still want to find her so much? I'm with you now, you're not lonely." She questioned, tapping her fingers on the ground, her other hand cupping her face, her elbow on her leg.

"Because she'd be all by herself." Seto replied without a second thought, his new friend stared at him for a moment, her lips curved into a frown before they suddenly twisted into a smile,

"Heh. I was right earlier. You _are _funny." She giggled, receiving a frown from Seto as he tried to decide whether or not this was a compliment, "You're a really nice person, Seto."

Her word's struck him by surprise. He had never really been told he was a nice person…There was never anyone _to _tell him that. He felt warm inside after hearing this, it was like she was the sun to light up the storm he'd been living through for many months.

"I wish I had a name," The girl sighed, "I feel like a nobody without one, it's weird…Names are there to identify people…To show they existed. Without a name…When I'm gone, it'll be like I was never there." She went on. Her voice was just like a drone in the background to Seto though; all of his thoughts were occupied with the wonder if finally having some company. It was nice. The girl soon caught on that he wasn't listening, stopping mid-sentence to pout at him,

"Eh? What's with that strange smile on your face?" she asked, leaning a tiny bit closer. Seto's face remained bright and happy as he spoke,

"Oh. I'm sorry. I guess I'm just happy to finally have someone." He replied, leaning back and gazing at the white sky as clouds drifted by freely and slowly. They looked like cotton-candy. The girl's eyebrows raised before she closed her eyes again, smiling as she chuckled, falling onto her back and opening her eyes to stare at the sky too,

"Yeah. I guess I haven't exactly been that long without someone since I was asleep…But, I still enjoy talking with you, Seto!" she agreed as Seto also lay on his back across from her.

It was nice. Everything seemed to have quietened. The birds chirps were no longer existent and the breeze had died down so that it was barely enough to make their hair flutter slightly. Now the only sound was their breathing. It was nice. Usually at times of great silence like this, the only sound he could hear was his own steady breaths. It felt…Comforting now that there were some other breaths beside his own.

"Hey…" Seto started, waiting for a reply. None came, just the steady breaths. After a few moments of waiting, he tried again, "Hey…" He called quietly. He frowned when once again there was no reply. He pushed himself up with his arms, staring down at her. He couldn't help but smile slightly when he saw her. Her eyes were closed as she lay on her side, her body completely relaxed and her breathing even. She was fast asleep.

Seto stared down at her for one more second before returning to his last position and closing his eyes himself.

_She really was like a sun to me. As I spent more time with her, all of the fear and isolation inside seemed to fade away, the scars of loneliness healing one by one. She really is my sun, my only source of warmth, and I'm never letting her go._

**And that's the end of that chappie ^^ Hope you enjoyed! Thanks much if you reviewed! Oh, and by the way, those long parts in italic writing like the one I finished this chapter with are intended to be like those cut-scenes…I call them emo cut-scenes, like the ones after *SPOILER* P.F died and after he became friends with crow and so on, you know, the silhouette ones. Hope you're enjoying so far~**


	3. Chapter 3

**Hi everyone ^^ As you know, I own neither Fragile Dreams nor its characters, but I do own my OCs. Love you all! **

"Seto! Seto! Wake up, please!" The girl's words echoed faintly in the distance. "SETO!"

Seto gasped, springing upwards in surprise as he awoke to her desperate begs and the deep sound of rumbling. The whole ground around them was shaking and cracking. His eyes immediately moved to his friend, who was lying next to him. Her eyes were closed shut and shimmering tears were trickling down her face. She was trembling and whimpering slightly in fear at the earthquake.

Seto gasped as the ground beneath him jolted suddenly. He fell backwards next to her, a sharp pain appearing in his back as it hit the ground. Although it was short, every minute felt like an hour during that earthquake. Seto had to push the frightened girl out of the way before himself to save her from being crushed by a falling part of rock. They were lucky that all buildings around them were already collapsed, or they would have had the worry of being crushed by toppling buildings.

They lay there still for a few minutes after the earthquake, recovering from the shock. They were badly scratched and beaten up and the ground around them was cracked. "Are you okay?" Seto asked in between pants, attempting to sit up as he stared at the girly with worry. Tears of shock and fear were still streaming from her eyes and she was trembling fiercely. She gave a small nod.

"We need to get out of here. Fast, before there's another earthquake." Seto told her urgently, and she was more than happy to oblige. Seto struggled to stand before reaching his hand up and hoisting her up too. The area around them was even more ruined than before, and every remaining intact item or wall had been completely crumbled now.

The two figures used every ounce of strength inside to sprint across the shattered ruins, occasionally having to jump over fallen walls. Seto was dragging his companion along by the hand to be absolutely sure she was not left behind. Only when they had retreated far into the nearby forest did they decide it was safe enough to stop. Seto collapsed onto the ground under a tree, his breaths heavy and uneven. His hand finally slipped out of his friend's as he slumped down. Her face was still wet from her tears and was slightly red. She stood there for a second, her breaths sounded worryingly like chocking sounds as she forced the air back and forth from her lungs. Only when her breathing calmed down did she sit next to Seto, staring up at the branches and green leaves of the tree towering above.

"It's over now." Seto comforted her between breaths, his hands limp at his sides and his body exhausted. He once again received only a nod from her as she stared up at the tree. Her breaths had calmed down completely now and her mouth was firmly shut. Her face had gone from scarlet to pale, tinted green. "…Are you sure you're okay?" Seto asked worriedly, leaning forward to get a better look at her face, which was coated with a thin layer of sweat.

"I feel…A bit…Sick." She replied in a raspy voice. Seto furrowed his eyebrows with a frown, a little bit unsure of what to do in this situation. Maybe she'd gone into shock?

"W-What should I do?" Seto asked. He felt he had to be of some use when she was like this. He couldn't just watch. The nauseous girl shook her head, the strands that had stuck to her forehead detaching themselves as she shook,

"It'll…Pass." She told him. He still couldn't help but feel uneasy as he sat beside her. Hopefully, it _would _pass, before too long.

He didn't take his eyes off of her for one second until she felt better. He felt great relief when the colour began to return to her face and she stopped sweating. She closed her eyes, taking a deep breath as the sickness started to pass, just like she said it would.

"Are you feeling better now?" Seto questioned her, just to be sure. She nodded calmly with a weak smile,

"I told you it would pass." She mumbled, "I'm sorry for worrying you…I made a big deal out of things earlier." She suddenly apologized, opening her eyes and staring at him apologetically. Seto felt that he should be quite to this, it was clear on her face that she wasn't finished speaking, "I guess I was just…Really scared. It was horrible. I thought I was going to die. And if I died right then and there…You wouldn't have a name to remember me by. And when…You also grew old…And passed on…" She paused to see his reaction to this, closing her eyes and continuing when she saw he was okay, "Nobody would even know I existed." She finished, her eyes remaining closed.

"…You just need a name then."

Her eyes opened and she sat up straight, "What?"

"You need a name." Seto repeated, "We just need to give you a name."

She stared at him, wide eyed, in silence for a moment before closing her eyes and giggling, "It sounds like you to say that…But…If you insist on me having a new name…Then I want you to name me, Seto." She opened her emerald eyes into a bright smile as she waited for him to reply with her new identity.

"Are you sure?"

"Mm-hmm."

"Okay…" Seto said slowly, staring up at the tree, deep in thought as the girl awaited his reply. "Harumi." He said softly after a long pause, "I'm going to call you 'Harumi'."

"Harumi…Huh…" she closed her eyes as she said it, cherishing every syllable of it,

"Harumi." Seto confirmed.

"Seto…?" Harumi asked, opening her eyes to smile at him,

"Hmm?"

"Say my name again, please…"

Seto nodded, obediently repeating the word, a gentle smile on his face too,

"Thank you, Seto."

"You're welcome…Harumi."

_I was delighted. If we were to ever be separated, I knew she would have something to remember me by. Whenever someone called her name…She would remember me, like I remember her. I'll always remember her, her bright smile…Her warm voice…Those beautiful things that make her will never leave my mind…And they will never leave me heart_

**Lol corny 8D Anyway, that's the end of that chapter, hope you enjoyed, sorry, it's shorter than others, but I'll make up.**


	4. Chapter 4

**Remember- I don't own Fragile Dreams but I do own my OCs ^^ If you're still reading this, then I love ya! **

The forest was larger than Seto had thought. Whilst they were unsure as to where their destination was in the first place, it was unnerving to be lost. Every towering tree looked the same to them, it was like a maze.

"Don't worry; I'm sure we'll get out soon." The comforting words Seto kept repeating weren't only for Harumi, they calmed him down too. As night time drew near, more and more nocturnal animal noises erupted into the song of the forest.

"It's creepy." Harumi commented, her voice trembling as she spoke. Seto didn't reply to this. It was hard to reassure others when he himself was feeling extremely uneasy. He couldn't play brave forever. The light got dimmer and dimmer as the sun sunk lower into the sky, and before long, it was completely dark.

_Harumi's being very quiet. _Seto thought to himself worriedly, "Harumi?" he asked quietly, waiting for a reply. Nothing, only the chorus of the forest animals and the rustling of leaves. "Harumi?" He repeated, beginning to panic when he heard nothing. He spun around, desperately using his flashlight to search for her. She was gone.

* * *

><p>Harumi frantically ran through the woods, panting heavily as twigs and dry leaves cracked under her bare and worn feet. She had gathered the fact that she and Seto had been separated, and petrified was currently an understatement of her feelings. Tears of pure fear were beginning to form in her eyes as she took in the fact that she was alone in a forest at night. <em>Why…It's the entire earthquakes fault! Without that we wouldn't be here in the first place! <em>She thought to herself, blaming everything on the quake.

It felt like hours as she ran through the wood all alone. She felt on the verge of collapsing when she suddenly heard rustling in the bushes, accompanied by the cracking of twigs. She spun around swiftly; eyes wide and alert; listening intently,

"Who's there?" She whispered, taking a frightened step back as a figure emerged from the shadows.

"Harumi?...Harumi?" Seto called, louder than average but careful as to not attract any unwanted attention. He hoped his flashlight wouldn't run out of battery anytime soon, even without it, it was uncomfortably dark. He was greatly pitying Harumi, who was wandering the woods with no source of light other than the moon above, which was currently being smothered by some slowly passing, black clouds.

He was not expecting to hear what he did. The peaceful silence that had occurred after the cry of the forest dyed down was suddenly interrupted by a loud, shrill scream, the voice was unmistakable. "Harumi!" Seto exclaimed before breaking into a run, following the direction of the sound.

* * *

><p>"What's with all the racket?" The figure spoke in a bullying tone, the moonlight just enough for Harumi to make out his features as he stepped out of the shadows. He had some sort of smirk on his cat-like face, the cat resemblance mainly being around his green eyes. Jet-black hair was covered by a strange, purple hat. His outfit was hard to make out in the scarce source of light, but Harumi could swear she could see a kettle dangling from his side as she stood before him, her hands over her mouth as she trembled in fear, whimpering quietly,<p>

"Well, well, well, what have we here?" the boy before her smirked, circling her like a cheetah ready to pounce, his head tilted as he looked her up and down, "A human, huh?"

Harumi gave a timid nod, not brave enough to say anything. This appeared to amuse him,

"Heh. Calm down already, it's not like I'm going to eat you or something." He laughed before lifting his gloves hand, fixing his hat and stuffing his hands in his pockets, "Hmph. You're boring. I'm going to fall asleep if I stay here for too long." He commented before turning around and beginning to leave,

"W-Wait!" Harumi called, having gotten over her fear in a way, reaching a hand out after him. He stopped in his tracks, glancing at her over his shoulder,

"Oh?" He questioned before swiftly spinning around and to her surprise, doing a cartwheel towards her, landing right in front of her.

"D-Don't leave." Harumi said in a tentative, squeaky voice. The boy's smirk just grew more menacing, "Do you know how to get out of here?"

"Hmph. Like I'll tell _you._" he snapped rudely in reply, crossing his arms. Harumi looked down in disappointment,

"Please? What's your name?" she asked quietly, but it was no use,

"I don't have to answer. Listen. I'll be asking the questions around her, you just answer, is that clear?" He roughly poked her chest with a force that nearly pushed her backwards before circling her like before.

"So why are you here, huh?" he asked as he walked around her, his hands behind his back,

"Well, I got separated from-"

"So where are you from?" He interrupted her before she even had a chance to reply, irritating her although she decided to let it pass,

"I don't know I don't have any-" she tried to answer again before the boy interrupted her, _again, _it took ever last hint of patience left in her not to lose it as he showered more questions at her, appearing to enjoy it as she attempted to answer. She felt her anger building up inside of her until eventually, it burst.

"LISTEN!" She shouted furiously, her face burning red from anger, "What the hell is the point of bombarding me with stupid questions and not even giving me the time to answer? Do you think it's _cool _to do that? Argh! I hate people like you!" she exclaimed in a frustrated voice. The boy blinked before smirking again,

"And this is how you ask for my help? How rude." He teased in a sing-song voice, clearly not affected by the fact that he had just been shouted at and insulted by a girl he barely knew.

Harumi felt calmer now that she had let out her rage, and after frowning at him in silence for a moment she sighed, looking down, "Argh! I got separated from my friend and now this?" Her voice was more upset than angry now as she kicked some dirt off of the forest floor, ignoring the stinging sensation that it sent into her bare foot. She gasped when she looked up before closing her eyes "ARGH!"

The irritating boy was long gone. Her eyes scanned the area for some tracks, something catching her eye. She walked over to a tree, there was a small message scratched onto it.

"If you want…Information…You will…Ha…Have to catch me for…it…Like that's po…Posi…possible. See…you later…su-sucker." She read aloud, narrowing her eyes. It was hard to see in the dim moonlight. After rereading the message, she scowled, crossing her arms. "What a prick." She muttered under her breath.

* * *

><p>"Harumi! Harumi! Can you hear me? I'm here!" Seto's throat was starting to feel dry as he called repetitively, stopping momentarily every now and then to take a breather. He finally had a friend, and he wasn't going to let her go. He gasped when he heard a strange sound from nearby. It was creepy…an eerie atmosphere swept over him. It sounded a little bit like the breeze, but different…Water maybe? He looked around him alertly, desperately shining his flashlight around him. He gasped when something caught his eye, only having seemed to appear in the light of the torch,<p>

"Who's there?" He demanded, shining his flashlight once again on the suspicious spot. He widened his eyes, his mouth dropping open slightly. There was a strange creature there, it was floating in the air and was some sort of blue, translucent colour. It highly resembled a jelly fish.

He searched the area for something that he could use as a weapon, anything that he could defend himself with. The strange mass was slowly making its way towards him, and it was frightening when he had no idea what it was. He pounced forward after spotting a fallen branch on the ground, wrapping his fingers around it and hoisting it up. There were still some dying leaves attached to it and it was heavy, it would do for now.

Seto found himself swinging it around like a madman at the strange creature without a clue what he was doing. He felt relief sweep over him when he saw he was making progress, the branch collided with the strange thing, sending it spinning as it flew backwards before quickly steadying itself. Seto wasn't the type of person to randomly attack any strange creature, he was quite gentle, but the killing intent, or at least it's intent to harm, seemed too ooze out of the creature itself, it was clearly an enemy.

Seto watched, panting, as it seemed to flutter to the ground before disintegrating into the air.

"What was that?..." He asked to himself quietly in between breaths, staring at the spot that it had 'died' on for a few seconds before finally leaving the area, refusing to drop the stick, just in case.

* * *

><p>"I'm having a pretty crap day, and you're not helping!" Harumi called continuously in an attempt to get the mischievous boy out of his hiding spot. He clearly knew how to get out of the forest, heck, maybe he could help her find Seto, and that was chance she couldn't let slip. She growled with anger after finding yet another insulting message etched onto a tree stump.<p>

_Are you _trying _to put me to sleep or something? _

She scowled as she punched the tree stump with a strong force out of fury before doubling over, grabbing her stinging fist with her free hand. Hmph, at least she'd made a mark in the stump, destroying some of the writing. It now read,

_Are you trying something? _

"Trying something? What does that mean?..." She looked down deep in thought, trying to ignore the stinging sensation as some blood trickled down her fist. After a few moments of thinking, her face suddenly lit up,

"That's it!" She whispered, a grin appearing on her face, "Just you wait, annoying boy!"

* * *

><p><strong>And that's the end of that chapter ^^ Hope you enjoyed, reviews are always appreciated!<strong>


	5. Chapter 5

**Remember- I don't own Fragile Dreams but I do own my OCs ^^ If you're still reading this, then I love ya!**

Seto made his way through the darkness cautiously, starting at every sound he heard. What _was _that thing? Was there more? These questions lingered in his mind, and he was nearly forgetting about Harumi.

A gasp escaped his mouth as he heard noises similar from before, but louder, there was more. Oh no. If there was too many, would he be able to fight them off with just a branch? It wasn't at all sturdy, and was already on the verge of snapping. This was bad.

* * *

><p>A mischievous grin stayed on the blonde's face as she reached up to her ear, feeling the silver stud on it. The boy had showed some interest in it, perhaps he liked shiny things? <em>Okay, there isn't that high of a chance, <em>she admitted, _but I must find Seto, and if he can help me do that…It's worth a try._

She removed the stud from her ear, examining it closely; she wanted to look at the gem one last time. It was quite beautiful. While she couldn't remember where she got it, she felt somehow attached to it? The translucent gem sparkled one last time before with a sigh, closing her eyes gently, she let go, and it fell onto the ground.

She opened her eyes to see it lying there amongst the leaves, just about visible. _I'm sure he'll be able to see it. _She looked up at the sky, the moonlight would be enough to make it shine, and that would catch his eye if he came anywhere nearby. With on last, slightly regretful glance, she ran to the nearest tree, standing against it, peeking out from the side. Okay, it was the most cliché hiding place ever, but it worked.

* * *

><p>Seto felt his body start trembling as the translucent creatures came into view, appearing out of nowhere as his flashlight came upon them. He backed away in fear, his eyes wide as they slowly drifted closer. He gasped when he felt something hard on the back of his foot, and fell back. His eyes were torn between the advancing enemies and the item which had tripped him in the first place.<p>

He decided on the item, his eyes wandering towards a strange golden kettle. _What was something like that doing lying there? _ It was half buried in the leaves, but it was definitely a kettle. He looked up at the enemies, who were miraculously still making their way towards him. _There are many of them, but they're slow…Maybe if I run for it…_Seto bravely gulped before grabbing the kettle and jumping up before breaking into a fast sprint, further and further away from the cluster of jelly-fish like masses.

* * *

><p>Harumi sighed as she lay in wait, staring up at the leaves of the tree above her, ominously silhouetted against the moon. It had felt like hours since she set her 'trap' where was he? Or maybe he had already passed nimbly, and had simply escaped her attention and not found any interest in the expensive trinket?<p>

Her thoughts were interrupted by the crunching of leaves nearby. _Someone's coming…Now's my chance…_She shuffled back into the shadows to be absolutely sure that the figure that had just come into view did not notice her. Sure enough, its eyes were locked on the abandoned earing. Her lips curved into a smile as she eagerly watched as her plan went smoothly, the figure edging closer to the edge of the shadows and into the moonlight. _Genius. _She thought smugly. She did get quite a shock when she saw that it was not the boy from earlier at all, but someone else, someone familiar.

_Have I lost them? _Seto thought to himself as he panted, stepping out of the shadows, his hand still tightly holding onto the mysterious kettle. He lost concentration when something shimmering caught his eye. He walked forward, bending over to examine the suspicious item. _An earring? _He thought to himself as he reached his hand out to pick it up, _that's the second strange item I've found…_

"Seto!" He gasped as he heard the familiar voice yell his name joyously, and someone leapt from the shadows. His face melted into a mixture between surprise and happiness as Harumi sprang at him, latching herself onto him into a hug.

"Harumi?" He gasped, forgetting about the ring completely as he was nearly knocked over by the force. Her eyes were closed as she embraced him,

"I'm so glad! I was worried!" She went on happily, "And scared." She added with a hint of embarrassment.

Seto smiled in disbelief, the kettle falling from his hand as he wrapped his arms around her too, "I was scared too." He admitted, following her example and closing her eyes.

"Promise you won't leave me again?" he heard Harumi ask hopefully, he laughed kindly,

"So the blame's all on me?" He asked, opening his eyes. They were greeted by the swirling pool of green that was Harumi's as she nodded with a pout,

"You were walking too fast! I'm a slow walker, Seto!" She accused, crossing her arms. She stopped pouting when Seto laughed, smiling too before laughing herself, breaking out of the embrace. "Still promise?" She asked after the laughter died down, staring at him hopefully with rather demanding eyes,

Seto replied with a nod,

"You have to _say _it." Harumi told him, and he sighed at her pickiness before obediently saying what she wanted to her,

"I promise."

* * *

><p>The boy from earlier watched from the shadows as the two embraced yet again, tilting his hat down with his gloved finger and watching intently. <em>So that's where it went. <em>He thought to himself, referring to the golden kettle. He sighed before silently sitting down, cross legged with his arms also crossed. _May as well wait 'til they're done, then I can get it back. _

"Come on, let's go." He heard the boy he hadn't seen before say gently.

"mm-hm." The irritating girl agreed, there was the sound of crunching leaves as they stood. _I'm guessing he's the 'friend' she was looking for. _He presumed. He waited until he was sure they had left before finally walking into the moonlight to retrieve his lost item.

He frowned when he saw it was gone. "Hmph. Looks like I have a bit of chasing to do." He thought to himself with a confident grin before it faded into a curious stare as something caught his eye, shining in the moonlight. He marched on and leaned forward to get a look at it. An earring? He thought to himself as crouched down, picking it up and examining it. _May as well keep it. They got my valuable after all. I think it's a rather fair trade. _He stuffed it into his side-pouch before abruptly standing up, brushing all dirt and dust from his outfit. _Of course they aren't going to get it back even if I _do _get my kettle again. _He stared after them for a moment before saying aloud, "Friends…Huh?"

* * *

><p>"Oh!" Harumi gasped after remembering the abandoned earring, "My earing. I forgot it." She pointed out in a disappointed tone, looking down with a frown, <em>I sacrificed it for nothing! <em>

"Oh…That was yours?" Seto asked as he remembered the shimmering object amongst the leaves. Harumi nodded in reply. "Oh…Well…Is this yours also? I found this." Seto held up the muddy kettle he had saved, and Harumi widened her eyes,

"Oh! That belonged to him!" she exclaimed, dramatically pointing at it.

"Him?" Seto questioned with a frown, staring down at the item he held, Harumi nodded,

"The boy from earlier. Oh…I guess I didn't tell you about him. I met someone before you found me. He was strange. I didn't really like him. He knows how to get out of here, but he said I'd have to catch him first. Never mind the insulting comments…" A face of disgust appeared on her face as she explained this, and Seto's eyes stayed locked firmly onto the kettle all the while,

"He was carrying this?" He asked, shaking it, wondering how it could be of value. His locket came to mind immediately. Maybe it was given to him by someone important?

"It was attached to a belt he was wearing or something." Harumi told him. Seto's frown grew deeper, He wasn't sure whether or not to believe her, but if this boy did exist, then he would surely be missing this. If his locket went missing, Seto didn't know _what _he'd do.

"I wonder where he is." He sighed. Harumi shrugged,

"I don't really care." She said spitefully, looking away with a pout,

"But he might be lonely." Seto insisted in argument, but Harumi wasn't having it,

"Oh come on, if he really wanted our company he wouldn't have treated me like that. He's obviously quite fine on his own."

"I'm going after him." Seto said stubbornly,

"Seto, you can't go after every person you find. Some people would rather be alone." Harumi argued, making it clear that that was the end of it. Seto was about to protest but she shushed him, annoyed. He obediently kept quiet, not wanting to upset the friend he already had, the friend that he held dear. And so they continued through the woods, searching for an exit. They would find one, eventually.

After a few more hours of unfruitful searching, they were glad to see that the sun was finally rising. The sky was beautiful, indeed. But apparently, the sun was not enough to keep away malicious entities, as a ferocious and ominous killing intent struck them suddenly like a bullet. Seto trembled in fear and Harumi went an unhealthy shade of pale. This wasn't like the previous enemies. This was bigger. This was stronger.

**And that's the end 8D I'm evil, aren't I? ^^. Hope you enjoyed, reviews will always be appreciated (Aw, who am I saying this to anyway? Nobody reads this!)**


	6. Chapter 6

**Many thanks to Annoying Teenager for being literally the only person who reads this XD  
>Disclaimer: I don't own Fragile Dreams or its characters but I do own my OCs ^^<strong>

"Something's coming! We have to leave!" Seto exclaimed, grabbing Harumi's arm and proceeding to drag her along as he ran, not knowing where, but away from the profuse murderous intent.

"That area felt horrible. Like we were being watched. I hope it's gone now." Harumi shivered as they ran, receiving a nod from Seto,

"There are strange creatures in this forest. I ran into some earlier, they attacked me." He explained, Harumi's eyes widening,

"Whoa, really! Wow, now looking back on my time alone in this forest is even more scary…" she commented with a blink as she thought of what could have happened if she hadn't found Seto when she did.

"You weren't on your own, that boy you were talking about would have been nearby." Seto disagreed, Harumi pouted,

"Pfft, as if he would help me. I never want to see him again, unless it's to wipe that stupid smirk off of his face." She went on angrily, Seto chuckled in reply, "What's so funny?" She demanded, annoyed.

"You." Seto laughed, Harumi stopped pouting, looking up in thought,

"Um, I'm not sure if that's an insult or a compliment…But I'll take it as a compliment I guess?" she thought aloud. Seto smiled before all of a sudden he felt eyes on himself again and the horrible atmosphere from earlier crept closer again.

"It's still following us." He furrowed his eyebrows as he picked up pace. To their horror, though, rather than getting fainter, the strength of the ominous feel was growing stronger and stronger. Seto was just about to say they should turn around, peering over his shoulder before he painfully collided with something hard and ice-cold. He gasped as he fell back, Harumi whimpered when he brought her down too, landing heavily on top of her. He quickly scrambled off of her, helping her sit up before they finally moved their attention to the object that had knocked them over in the first place.

Seto felt Harumi tremble next to him as they looked up at the creature, eyes wide. It looked like it had jumped straight out of a horror film or his worst nightmares. It was some strange, large mask with features that made it look permanently horrified, and there were some weird red, ribbon-like objects streaming from the back of its head. It made a sound like roaring tides of an ocean as it floated before them.

Seto desperately searched for the stick that he had with him before whilst Harumi whimpered beside him, unable to take her eyes off of the horrific entity. The boy widened his eyes in horror when he realised he'd forgotten to take the only available weapon with him, staring at the creature once again. It was moving slowly back, and at first Seto thought it was retreating, that is, before it suddenly shot forward, shooting into him with so much force that he was sent flying back. Pain seared through his body as he collided with a tree and the sensation of sticky, warm liquid soaked into his hair, blood.

"S-Seto!" Harumi managed to cry before the creature turned to her, she had no time to escape and soon she too was knocked back, landing on the ground, multiple twigs snapping underneath her weight.

"Harumi!" Seto choked, attempting to stand up, only to stumble and trip over a rock. He was beginning to feel nauseous as his vision began to blur and double, he had never received such a fierce blow to the head, and he felt ready to pass out any minute.

Harumi felt tears dripping down her cheeks as she saw Seto fall forward, unconscious and she was left alone with the horrific creature. She didn't feel fear as it advanced on her. _I'm going to die…_She sobbed to herself, closing her eyes and burrowing her face into the ground, _I never thought it would end like this…_She felt goose bumps raise in dozens on her arms as the air temperature dropped drastically around her, as if a breeze was coming from the killer, _At least…I got to spend my last few minutes with him…_

CRASH! Harumi opened her eyes with a gasp, sitting bolt upright and alertly staring at what had just happened. Tears of relief welled up in her eyes when she saw the nightmare-ish creature disintegrating into the air, fading away. _It's over…_She smiled weakly as she turned to look at her saviour. It was not what she was expecting to see. Before her stood a beautiful young girl who appeared to be in her late teen-years. She was clothed in an expensive looking, puffy knee length, shoulder less dress with many ruffles and layers. A stripy shawl with golden, gem encrusted plates was sewed onto it. Everything on her was white, red or dark grey, apart from her amber eyes and smooth, fair skin.

It wasn't her ridiculously long, silver hair that was most eye-catching about the mysterious maiden though, it was the many tattoos coating her skin. There were many spirals and stripes on her face and shoulders. Harumi felt her eyes automatically wandering to the tattoo across her chest. That one seemed to get to her some-how. The said marking was simply the word "Friends" Written in neat black ink.

The girl stopped glaring at the monster when she realised that she was not alone, and her silver hair seemed to flow when she swiftly spun around to face the shocked and beaten up blonde on the ground, before smiling brightly,

"Ah. Good evening. You do not look too well. Are you quite alright?" The warmth coming from her gentle voice was a surprise to Harumi. How could someone who had just slaughtered the killer without hesitance be so kind and normal? She strolled over to the surprised girl on the floor, bending over and reaching out her hand. "You are not injured, are you?" She asked as Harumi tentatively reached her hand out to the girl, trembling. She gasped, pulling it back immediately at skin contact and staring at it as if it was a foreign object,

_Her hands…They were so cold…_She furrowed her eyebrows as she looked back at the girl, who was not looking at all fazed by the abrupt action, "I see. You are not comfortable with skin contact. Please forgive me for making you feel discomfort. Please stand so that I can examine your wounds."

Harumi gulped before shooting upwards and nearly falling over as her head felt light. Luckily, the stranger caught her swiftly, the previous bright smile now replaced by a concerned frown,

"Please, not so quickly! You must recover before you move around too much!" She scolded the dizzy girl before sighing, calming down, "Please stand still while I confirm the damage caused by that enemy."

Harumi was rather speechless right now as she replayed the previous events in her head, which was throbbing painfully. It was so strange and confusing, almost as if it were a dream, and that girl didn't exist. She was so kind and polite, but why was she being like this? _I'm a total stranger…So why? I could be a psychotic murderer for all she knows…So why? _She winced; her skin prickling as the strange girl gently grabbed her arm, inspecting the bleeding wound closely.

"It appears you have not obtained any serious damage. You should be fine with a short rest." She smiled again, releasing Harumi's arm, which felt as if it had frostbite before turning to Seto, "The boy is in worse condition, I am afraid. He could have received serious damage to the head which could result in concussion or even worse." She explained the lines as if she had learned them off of by heart and practiced them over and over,

H-He'll be okay, right?" Harumi stuttered, cautiously glancing between the two people.

"Oh. I hope I have not worried you. There is an 85% chance that he will get through this without and permanent effects."

"How do you know all of these things?..."

"I only repeat what is stored in my data banks." The silver haired girl told her as if this was nothing out of the ordinary. She smiled as Harumi stared at her blankly in confusion,

"Data…Banks…? What?" she muttered before she was snapped out of her thoughts,

"Oh. How rude of me. I have failed to introduce myself. My name is Tomadachi, spelled T-O-M-A-D-A-C-H-I, I am from a series of advanced, custom-made robots." Tomadachi explained with a shut-eye smile. Harumi's jaw dropped at this sudden piece of information,

"R-Robot…? Meaning…You aren't human!" She exclaimed in panic, taking a step back from the humanoid before her, _N-No wonder her skin was so cold! _She stared at her hand in horror as if she had touched something particularly disgusting,

"I am not human, but I was programmed to mimic the average human's reactions and emotions. I can speak a total of six different languages, English, Japanese, Spanish, French, Chinese and Italian and am very capable in medical affairs and combat skills." Tomadachi explained. _G-God is this girl…Is she superhuman or something? I mean, even for a robot…That…_The thoughts were like a scribbled mess in Harumi's head as she tried to comprehend what was going on, When she snapped out of her thoughts, Tomadachi was knelt next to Seto, her eyebrows furrowed as she examined the wound on his forehead, which had thankfully stopped bleeding.

"I shall take care of your friend. Please follow me. My living place is nearby, and I can tend to him there." She ordered Harumi before picking up Seto effortlessly as if he was as light as a feather and holding him bridal-style. "May I ask of your name?" she added, turning to face the girl who was in a slight daze,

"I-It's Harumi she stuttered.

"Harumi, it is a pleasure to meet you. Let us go to my house." Tomadachi smiled kindly, and before she knew it Harumi found herself following the mysterious robot into the woods, under the towering trees above.

**That's the end of that chapter! I hope you enjoyed it! **


	7. Chapter 7

**Hello, readers ^^ Sorry if I took some time updating this chapter x.x Been busy.  
>Disclaimer: I don't own Fragile Dreams or its characters but I do, however, own my OCs :) Oh, and just before the story, I have pictures of my OCs on deviantart, the link is on my profile if you want to see :) I worked hard on them!<strong>

It was just after noon when they finally reached the mysterious robot's home, and the sun was its highest peak in the blue sky. The light it emitted was streaming through the gaps in the trees, which were still in the non-existent breeze.

Tomadachi smiled at Harumi, who was feeling quite worn out and sweaty by now. "Do not worry, we are almost there. Oh! And I forgot to ask, what is this boy's name?" She nodded her head towards Seto, who was still in her arms. Harumi was quite impressed that she wasn't worn out, even if she is a robot, she must have _some _limits.

"Oh. His name is Seto." Harumi told her, smiling back weakly. The robot's expression didn't change,

"I see." She looked down at him for a second before her eyes returned to the path ahead. "Oh! That's my home, there! Just ahead! Can you see it?" she excitedly pointed to the age-worn roof of a building that was just about visible over the trees. Many tiles had fallen off, leaving it rather bare.

"Whoa." Harumi gasped when they finally reached it. Ancient as it was, the size of it was still impressive. It had to be at least three stories high! It looked difficult to enter, though; the brambles and hedges surrounding the building were horrifically over grown.

The paint on the walls was peeling off and only a small tint of green was left. The sun had probably worn it off. Harumi was feeling uneasy about the many shards of glass buried in the grass, some large and some small, that had fallen from the smashed windows.

"H-Hey…Tomadachi…Is it really safe to walk in here? I mean…There's glass, and thorns…" she chuckled nervously and Tomadachi sighed before grinning,

"If you are that worried, then I suppose I could carry you." she offered. Harumi had no time to protest when she was swiftly thrown over the robot's shoulder.

"Wah! Wait! You can't carry two people, it's impossible! I don't like heights!" Harumi panicked, waving her arms in the air frantically. Her frantic squirming stopped abruptly when she noticed the robot was now only carrying Seto with one arm. _How…How strong is she? _She gasped when she started to run, unbothered by the sharp things hidden in the ground.

"We're here!" Tomadachi sang, throwing a door open and finally letting Harumi, who was feeling quite dizzy, down. She blinked, shaking her head with her eyes firmly shut, before opening them and looking around the room.

"Wow…" was all the shocked girl could say. The room was so clean and tidy, it was as if it was sparkling! Once the door was closed, no hint of the mess outside was left. The windows were hidden by expensive-looking silver curtains which rested on the floor, which was perfectly polished wood. In the centre of the back wall there was a large marble staircase which led to a door.

Harumi had to squint her eyes to see. The only sources of light were some candles on various tables. "How do you keep this place so _clean_?" She asked, spinning around to face the robot, who had gently placed the unconscious boy on a comfortable looking two-seater sofa in the corner. She turned around,

"Oh. I was programmed to clean. Master would not want the house to get dirty, so even now…" her voice trailed off and her smile faded into a grief stricken, wide eyed frown.

"T-Tomadachi…Are you…Are you okay? What master?" Harumi ran over to her, frowning worriedly. The robot closed her eyes, resting her head in a pale hand.

"I'm sorry to make you worry. I'm fine. Never mind my master. I'm going to tend to Seto now." She told Harumi, who bit her lip. Her voice sounded so dead now…So lifeless. What had happened to the lively girl that was there just seconds before?

Harumi watched on as she knelt next to the sofa which Seto was lying on, examining his wound. Tomadachi stood up before hurriedly opening a dark wooden cabinet and taking out a first aid kit. "There are many of these around the house, in case anything happened, a medical emergency…Emergency…" she explained, repeating the words solemnly, standing there with her eyes glued to the floor for a few moments before blinking and strolling back to Seto.

Harumi sighed before approaching the robot and positioning herself next to her and staring down at Seto. Tomadachi tightly wrapped bandages around his wound before placing his head on a red, embroidered cushion and packing away the first aid kit.

"I have somewhere to go." Tomadachi told her, "I will be right back. Stay with Seto."

Harumi nodded as she smiled weakly, her shoes tapping on the stairs before she opened the door at the top, making sure to close it behind her, leaving Harumi alone with Seto. He looked so peaceful when he was sleeping, and the strands of hair previously covering a lot of his face were now brushed back. He looked better that way. _I wonder where Tomadachi is going…_she wondered, kneeling down so that her face was level with his.

She got quite a shock when the boy's eyes opened all of a sudden, gasping and falling backwards, her hands stopping her from hitting the floor. "Seto! You're awake!" She exclaimed excitedly, her face lighting up before she swiftly stood, jumping joyously into the air.

"Harumi…? Where am I? What happened..." Seto mumbled, trying to sit up before groaning, grabbing his head and lying back down.

"Calm down. You received quite a hit to the head. I'll go find Tomadachi and tell her you're awake. Don't get up." Harumi advised, smiling when Seto nodded before proceeding to run up the stairs excitedly, throwing the door open. There were no candles in the hall past the door, the light from the last room was the only source of light, which was dim in the first place. She gulped before nervously making her way through the darkness, feeling her way through the corners.

She tried the first door she came across, searching for the handle with her hand before turning it. It was locked. She frowned before moving on. Huh? It seemed to be getting lighter as she made her way through the hall. She widened her eyes when she saw the sunlight streaming out from under a wooden door just ahead. She gulped, _This must be where she is…But why am I feeling so uneasy?..._

The girl nervously stepped forward, wrapping her hand around the handle.

"DON'T OPEN THAT DOOR!" She gasped, spinning around when she felt an ice-cold hand on her shoulder, screaming. She could just about make out Tomadachi's face in the light from the suspicious room. She had never seen such a panicked and desperate face in her life. The robot's facial expression had hints of fear, shock, sadness _and _anger mixed into it, was that even possible?

She watched, wide-eyed as the girl regained her composure, her breath calming down. "I'm sorry for shouting. Please forgive me. You aren't to go anywhere near that room again." This was not a request, it was an order. Tomadachi's frown stayed firmly on her face as she whipped out a small, golden heart-shaped key. Harumi watched, still in shock as she locked the door, dropping the key into her pocket. "I'm sorry. What was it you came to tell me?" She smiled again as if nothing had happened, turning to the surprised Harumi,

"I…I, um, came to say that Seto has woken up…" Harumi told her quietly _Is it really possible for her to be a robot? Is she really just a machine? I could…The emotion in her face was so…How can a robot be capable of that…_

"Oh! What a relief! I'm glad! Let's go!" Tomadachi chuckled, grabbing hold of Harumi's hand and dragging her through the hall, the light fading behind them as they reached the door.

"Seto!...Oh…" Harumi's voice trailed off.

"Shh. It seems we'll have to wait to speak to him." Tomadachi whispered gently from beside her. Seto was fast asleep on the sofa, his eyes closed and his breathing even. Harumi nodded,

"You're right."

"I'm sure you should follow his example, Harumi. You must be tired."

"No, I'm fine."

"Please, just take a rest. There are many sofa's in this room, choose which ever one you would like. I have business to attend to." And with that, the robot disappeared into the darkness of the hall again, and Harumi was left on her own, her mind replaying the scenarios which had just happened. Tomadachi was being very suspicious. _Master…Medical Emergency…Locked room…._the girl sat down on a small sofa in the corner, crossing her arms as she tried to piece the strange things together. Her eyelids felt heavy, though. Tomadachi was right, she felt ready to collapse any minute now if she wasn't already on a chair. She couldn't do anything about it when she found herself falling into a deep sleep, her head tilting to the side, resting on her shoulder.

**That's the end of that chapter! Hope you enjoyed!**


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

**I am so sorry for not updating in a while (A few days) I've been focusing on art more than writing lately, my apologies. But, I am back! Yay!  
>Disclaimer- I own neither Fragile Dreams nor it's characters, but my OCs are mine entirely, and don't forget it! Those OCs so far include Harumi and Tomadachi. <strong>

"Ne, Seto?" Harumi asked quietly as they stood at the open front door, the sunlight streaming in and the breeze tickling her face,

"Mm?"

"Do you still plan on searching for that girl? We…We have a home now, Tomadachi says we can stay for as long as we want…And…I'm not sure if you'll find her, Seto." Harumi bit her lip sympathetically, turning her head away from outside to face her friend,

"I have to look for her." Seto replied stubbornly, Harumi sighed in reply as she looked down sadly, it had felt so nice to relax for a while, to have a bed to sleep in at night, warmth. Tomadachi was an expert in plant life, and seemed to know exactly what and what wasn't edible, so they really had no worries.

After a short pause, Harumi spoke again, "I wonder what Tomadachi is doing. I'm getting suspicious." She wondered aloud, changing the topic,

"Suspicious?" Seto asked in curiosity, "How?"

"You were asleep at the time, but…When I went to look for her, there was a room with a light on, I was about to open It, but she found me…She really freaked out about it, it was…Strange." Harumi explained, "I mean, She's a robot, right? How could she get so flustered over one door? She locked it immediately afterwards…" her voice got louder as she went on, gesturing with her hands as she spoke,

Seto stared in silence for a second as he thought; "Well…" he said finally, "I think we should leave her alone. Everyone has things they want to hide."

"But Se-to, what if it's something important? Like what if she's secretly a murderer or something…?" Harumi whined persistently, Seto shaking his head in reply,

"I don't think she is."

"Whatever." Harumi pouted before flicking her hair with a 'hmph' and walking away from the light of the door. Seto sighed, looking after her for a second before closing the door and following. He sat next to Harumi on one of the sofas, who was still sulking with her hunger for exploration. She only looked up when the hall door opened and Tomadachi walked out, closing it behind her.

"I've finished cleaning the rest of the house." She announced with a bright smile, jumping to the bottom of the stairs and landing perfectly on her feet without flinching, she noticed Harumi's expression, frowning, "Is there something wrong, Harumi?"

The girl in question grumpily shook her head, her arms crossed. _I'm still suspicious of the room…Oh my god…If she really is a murderer…_

"Lying is not good, Harumi. I can tell there is something wrong. Here. I picked this up outside, perhaps it will cheer you up." Tomadachi smiled again before making her way towards Harumi and dropping something into her hand,

Harumi looked down at the gift. It was a small wooden-carving of some kind of bird. It was simple, but still beautiful. "Wow. This is…Nice." Harumi beamed at Tomadachi. _How could I have ever thought she was a murderer! She is far too kind…_

"Father, what do you think of my carving? I tried real hard!" The unfamiliar voice of a young boy excitedly exclaimed, echoing,

"H-Hey, did you guys hear that!" Harumi demanded in shock, standing up and looking around the room frantically before sitting back down again, her arms crossed.

"Hear what?" Seto asked in confusion,

"That voice…" Harumi told him quietly, _I'm not going crazy, am I? _Her eyes wandered to the carving, the carving…She widened her eyes, _Is the- is the voice coming from the carving? _She brought it up to her ear, listening intently,

"That's very good, son! You're on your way to becoming a professional!"

"Hehe! You bet! I'm gonna be rich someday! I think first I'll buy a mansion, and then a really cool car!"

"Oh yeah? And then you could be famous for your carvings!"

"I'll go down in history dad, just you wait!"

"Hehe!"

"Hahaha!"

"There are…There're voices coming from the carving! I'm not lying, honest! Here, hold it, Seto!" Harumi went on excitedly, placing the object in Seto's hands. His eyes widened as the same scene replayed in his head,

"You're right! But…What is it? Are those people really saying that? Are there…Are there more survivors!" Seto got excited as he spoke, his face lit up,

"I don't know…I doubt it…If people really were alive…They probably wouldn't be thinking that way…"

Seto's smile faded into a disappointed frown, "Oh, you're right…"

"I know! Maybe-maybe they're memories! It fits in quite well, right?" Harumi suggested with a grin. Seto nodded with a weak smile,

"I suppose…"

"Memories? I would like to try! May I?" Tomadachi asked politely. Seto nodded, holding the object out to her. The robot held it tightly, closing her eyes before opening them again, a disappointed expression on her face, "I do not hear anything…Perhaps I am doing it wrong?"

"Oh…Really?" Harumi thought before clapping her hands, "Maybe it's because you're a robot…" she covered her mouth with her hands immediately, staring at Tomadachi, worrying if she had said something to offend her,

"That must be it." Tomadachi replied, not even slightly crestfallen, returning the object to them. "Oh, I just remembered. I have some matters to attend to. If you'll excuse me."

"Hey, wait! Where're you going?" Harumi demanded as Tomadachi began to make her way towards the door,

"Oh. Sorry, I just remembered another room that needs cleaning. I shall be right back. Please stay here." And with that, she was gone.

"See what I mean?" Harumi hissed to Seto, "Suspicious! I say we follow her, what about you?"

"I don't know." Seto replied in an unsure tone, looking down.

"Well, regardless of what you say, I'm going! Coming or not?"

"I guess…" Seto gave in, standing up along with Harumi and following her as she tip-toed to the door, moving dramatically like the spies in the movies.

She opened the door as silently as possible before leading Seto towards the suspicious room. Like last time, there was a light from inside. "Shh." She held her finger up to her lips, signalling silence before listening to the sounds from inside. Curtains closing, a candle being lit.

"You never really liked the daylight, did you? I suppose you would still be like that, even now…" Tomadachi's voice came from inside. Harumi and Seto exchanged glances, _who is she talking to? "_I hope you forgive me for that time…If…If I could have saved you…Oh, never mind that. I should cheer up. I don't know if you can hear me now, but…This is…This is the day I was created, you know, it's my birthday, master!"

_Master? _It was getting more and more suspicious as she spoke, and the curiosity was ready to burst inside of Harumi at this point,

"Your eyes have been closed for so long…I don't…I don't understand fully what has happened. I have searched through my data so many times, and I still don't get it! Would you have explained it to me when you were still here, master? What is death? What does it mean? I don't understand!"

Harumi had to cover her mouth with her hands to stop from gasping and blowing their cover, _A dead person…She's talking to a dead person! That means…There's a..._

_Body in there...There's a body! _Seto thought to himself,

_And if there's a body in there…that means…._

_Harumi might just be right…Maybe…Just maybe…Tomadachi really is-_

_A murderer!_

"I should be leaving now, master, I will return, I promise."

Harumi and Seto silently panicked as they heard Tomadachi's footsteps, she was coming! They'd be found out!

Sure enough, the door opened, light streaming out. Harumi squinted, trying to see what was inside, but the door was closed before she could see anything, Tomadachi slamming it frantically,

"H-Harumi, Seto! Why are you here? Did you- Did you hear anything?" She demanded worriedly, looking the two up and down. They shook their heads without a second thought. She closed her eyes, sighing in relief, "I-I see…Then, why are you standing in the dark! It's freezing in here! Let's return to the front room, shall we?"

Harumi stared at her with untrusting eyes as they returned in silence to the front room, Tomadachi smiling awkwardly, Harumi narrowed her eyes, _I'm going to solve this once and for all…I'm going to sneak into that room tonight._

**And that's the end of that chapter! Ha, I'm evil, aren't I! Anyway, thanks if you are still reading this, and see ya!**


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9**

**Hello! I am so sorry, I haven't been updating often at all! I'll try update more. Thanks if you reviewed, favourited, or are even reading this right now :)**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Fragile Dreams or it's characters but I do own my OCs.**

"Eh? Are you two going to sleep now?" Tomadachi asked as Harumi yawned loudly, rubbing her eyes and Seto stood up. They both nodded lazily.

"Oh. Goodnight. I cleaned your rooms earlier. It appears the guest rooms have finally come in handy." She smiled as she spoke, looking down at the floor. The other two were already making their way towards the door.

"Hey, Seto, what do you think is in that room?" Harumi whispered once the door had closed behind them, leaving them in darkness, the only light a candle in Seto's hand, the flickering light dancing on the walls. He closed his eyes as he shook his head,

"I don't know. It doesn't feel right to think she's a murderer though…I'm sure there is a reason for all this. She's been nice to us."

Harumi frowned before sighing and gesturing to the candle, "Can you please walk me to my room? There's only one candle. It's dark." She asked politely, changing the subject. Seto nodded, obediently following her as she made her way to her room, it was more her taking him there than him taking _her _there.

"Seto…?" Harumi asked after a minute's silence, the only sound the patter of their footsteps. She stopped walking, listening as Seto did the same, watching her as she looked down, "What…What are we going to do if Tomadachi really is a murderer? Return to the same way as before?" She asked, _She's providing food and shelter for us…She is a robot; she knows everything about survival skills…_

"I'm going to search for her." Seto replied almost immediately. Harumi didn't need to ask to know who 'her' was. The mysterious silver-haired girl that she had been told so much about.

"I somehow knew you were going to say that." Harumi sighed before glancing at him over her shoulder, her lips twisted into a small smile, "I'll walk on my own now, Seto. Thank you."

Seto nodded as she disappeared into the darkness of the never-lit hall, the sound of her footsteps getting fainter. Only when he heard the distant sound of her bedroom door opening and closing shortly after did he begin to return to his own room, the burning candle still in his hand. They both silently knew that, if they were to follow earlier plans, they would be seeing each other again shortly.

He was fully aware that Tomadachi, as a robot, was unable to sleep, but there had to be some period of time where she rested, they would take the chance then, to try and explore the mysterious room, which may just have a body in there. Another well-known fact was that it was securely locked, although Harumi had assured him that she had that under control.

Now all that was left was to wait, as Seto sat up in bed under the covers, leaning back, his head on the cold wall as he just waited for time to pass. The house was kept considerably clean despite the state the world was in presently, it was impressive how well Tomadachi had done her job. She was one dedicated robot.

Only when he heard the loud sound of footsteps outside did Seto snap out of his thoughts, listening alertly. It was Tomadachi, most likely up to do some late-night cleaning now that everyone was out of the way. More footsteps. A key turning in a lock? Seto widened his eyes when he realised she was entering 'The secret room'. With no time to waste, he quietly removed the covers and stood up, being sure that he made no noise as he opened the door, only to meet Harumi, who appeared to be just about to open it anyway.

"Now's our chance, the door is open! I was gonna pick the lock, but apparently there's no need now. Let's go, Seto!" She hissed and with no further explanation, grabbed his arm, dragging him along and trying to be quiet at the same time, whilst quiet and dragging didn't exactly go hand-in-hand, the managed to reach their destination undiscovered, luckily.

Harumi held her finger up to her lips, signalling silence as they stood outside the partly open door, light from a flickering candle streaming out of the room.

This time, Tomadachi stayed silent, and they were almost sure that she was not in there when they heard nothing for another few minutes. With a gulp, Harumi bravely reached her hand out to push the door fully open, but stopped with a start when they heard breathing from in there. Breathing? She closed her eyes, inhaling deeply before exchanging glances with Seto and mouthing the words "I'm opening it". Seto nodded, and held his breath as with a gentle push, the door swung open, revealing the suspicious room they had waited so long to see.

Two pairs of wide eyes met another pair of wide eyes as they saw Tomadachi, sitting cross-legged on the floor. All three people were frozen with shock before gasping. Harumi's eyes wandered from Tomadachi to what was next to her, causing her hands to abruptly cover her mouth to hold back a scream.

There _was _a body next to her! Sprawled across the floor beside her, amongst a messy pile of books and other trinkets, was what was clearly a human figure wrapped in rags and bandages like a mummy. Before either of the too startled teenagers could react, Tomadachi stood up,

"I can explain! I am truly sorry for keeping this a secret for so long! I just…I did not want him to be disturbed by strangers…Please forgive me, if you sit down, I shall explain immediately." Tomadachi, lacking the ability to feel emotions, had already regained her composure and calmed down, nervously glancing at the corpse out of the corner of her eye, "Please do not fear me, I have not 'killed' this person, I swear." She said quickly as she noticed the horrified expressions of the two.

"IT'S A BODY!" Harumi suddenly screeched, having snapped out of her trance, "It's a body right there! A corpse! I was right!" She screeched, frantically waving her arm around, clinging to Seto in excitement and horror.

"This person is my master, please be quiet! He doesn't like loud noises and he never did! Tomadachi interrupted desperately, shutting Harumi right up.

"This…This person is your master, Tomadachi?" Seto stuttered finally, his eyes glued to the figure on the floor. The robot nodded in reply. "So…Uh…What happened to him?"

His question was soon answered, but more by the robotic side of Tomadachi than the side that was more human like, the voice that came from her now was emotionless and, well…robotic. "The man I call 'Master' suffered from a heart attack. There was nothing I was able to do, and so he is no longer living." She told them. Sympathy began to stir inside the two as they listened. So that's why she's so sensitive about the room.

"Your master…Is he the one who created you?" Harumi asked, still staring at the deceased master. Her emerald eyes finally broke away from it, moving onto Tomadachi.

"He did. My master was a very lonely person. His relatives all died before him, so he was truly alone. He was an inventor, and he became rich with that, but money wasn't what he wanted. It seems there are things you can't buy. All the people around him saw him as an inventor, not as a person, nobody truly knew him, and so in the end...I was created. I was his only friend, and I was very special to him. I…Stayed with him until the very end, and…I will never leave him."

The passion in her voice was amazing. How could a robot be capable of such strong emotion, if any emotion at all? She clearly adored her creator more than anything else.

"So even robots…Can feel that way." Seto whispered before closing his eyes for a little longer than a blink, "I'm going back to bed. Good night."

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><p><strong>And that's it! I have to get ready for school in around 2 and a half hours . Yeah, can't sleep x.x Anyway, hope you enjoyed!<strong>


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10**

**I am so sorry for not updating in like, a week . I've been focusing on art too much; I repeat I am so sorry! Well, here's chapter ten, I can't believe it's been that many chapters already ^^ Thank you so much for reading!  
>Disclaimer: I don't own fragile dreams or its characters, but my OCs are mine completely!<strong>

"I'm out of here." Harumi announced tiredly the next morning the second she entered the front room in which Seto was sitting in a care-free manner and Tomadachi was busy dusting, coming to a halt after hearing Harumi's words.

"Huh? Why!"

"There's something you are not happy with?"

There words sounded like a scrambled up mess as they both tried to speak at the same time, Seto abruptly standing with a concerned look on his face.

"The fact that there's a body in the next room **creeps me out. **Tomadachi, It's sweet and all, but I think you don't understand, it's…Unhygienic." Harumi replied in as gentle a voice she could manage, but Tomadachi immediately disagreed,

"No, you're the one who doesn't understand. Master would not like to be buried under the soil, master wouldn't-"

"Yeah yeah, master this, master that. Bye. So you coming or not, Seto?" Harumi dropped the gentle tone, grumpily snapping at the robot before turning to face her companion, hands on hips,

"You're really going to leave Tomadachi alone like that?" Seto asked, his eyebrows furrowed and his mouth curved into a frown as he received a small nod from Harumi,

"She's been living alone for this long. Another little while won't do her any harm." She said spitefully before making her way towards the front door in a hurry.

"But, Harumi-" Seto continued before Tomadachi signalled for quiet, a tiny smile on her face,

"It's okay, Seto. If Harumi wants to leave than we cannot stop her. But please allow me to give you a going away gift first, Harumi. Come with me, please." Tomadachi assured Seto quietly before gesturing for then girl to follow her and beginning to walk to the hallway. Harumi stared unsurely before, with a small frown, tentatively following the robot into the darkness, quickly catching up to her, leaving Seto behind, who had taken a seat again just before she left the room, arms crossed.

"Hey, where're we going?" Harumi asked, blinking in the dark as her eyes adjusted and her surroundings became slightly clearer.

"You'll see." Tomadachi replied, before coming to a stop outside a door, which Harumi realised was the robot's bedroom. "We're here.~" She sang happily before opening the door. Harumi had never actually been in there in her short time there. It was like the guest rooms but appeared to be in better condition and more pampered, there was an antique looking wardrobe with intricate carvings in the corner, flawlessly polished.

Harumi followed her, looking around in curiosity, her eyes fixing on Tomadachi as she skipped to the wardrobe, humming, and opening the doors, peering inside, "Hmm…Let me see…This should fit." She mumbled to herself before, with a bit of rustling around, she pulled out an expensive, beautiful fitted dress. It was tight until the waist, where it flowed out lightly, stopping at around knee length. The neck was square shaped and the sleeves were long, which meant it wouldn't be too cold. There were multiple slips underneath the top layer, all a brilliant red. There was a simple rose in the dead centre of the chest.

"Um…Is that…For me?" Harumi asked nervously, eyeing the dress up and down. Tomadachi nodded enthusiastically. "But…Er…What would I do with it?"

Tomadachi laughed, holding the dress up, "Wear it of course. You can't wear that forever. I have some shoes, too, and I could probably lend you a coat and perhaps a hat." The robot gracefully twirled around excitedly before carefully laying the dress flat on the bed and running back to the wardrobe before proceeding to kneel down and pull out a pair of shoes, examining them. "What is your shoe size, Harumi?" She asked.

"Um…er…I don't know." Harumi replied in a confused voice, caught by surprise at Tomadachi's intentions. The feminine side was sparking in excitement at the pretty clothes, but she was still rather taken aback by it all.

"You shall have to try on a lot of shoes, then! Please come here." Tomadachi smiled, gesturing for her to come closer. Harumi obediently did so, still unsure about the whole situation as she was bombarded with different pairs of dainty shoes. Speechlessly trying each pair on. She sighed in relief, hanging her head when she _finally _found a pair that fitted, some small, leather black ankle-boots with a silver buckle.

"I feel like a witch." Harumi mumbled, although Tomadachi appeared to not hear.

"Perfect!" She exclaimed before frowning, "But if you wear them barefoot they will hurt. Here." With some more rummaging around she threw some stockings at the surprised girl, "Here."

"St-Stockings?..." Harumi stared at the garment in her hand with an awkward expression before staring at Tomadachi, who nodded,

"I don't see anything wrong with that. **And besides, it's rude to decline gifts, Harumi." **Harumi widened her eyes, chills going down her spine at the tone Tomadachi used, a sweet smile still on her face, which just made it scarier, _Who would have known she could be so scary…_"Okay, time to try it on!" Tomadachi nodded to the pile of clothing on her bed before skipping to the end of the room and leaning against the wall, watching Harumi as she shyly picking up the pieces of clothing, awkwardly standing there with the stockings as Tomadachi stared,

"Um…Could you please stop staring…It's…Making me feel uneasy." Harumi chuckled nervously as Tomadachi silently turned around to face the wall and Harumi finally started to change. She stared at the stockings like they were aliens before, with some struggling, finally managing to slip them along before the dress and shoes. "I feel stupid." She muttered as Tomadachi turned around to see the result.

"You look wonderful!" She exclaimed enthusiastically, clapping her hands. Harumi was much less impressed, staring at the outfit with an unhappy expression on her face. "Oh, and before you leave…I have something to talk to you about." Tomadachi's smiled into a more solemn face as she gestured for Harumi to once again come closer. The latter did so, Tomadachi leaning forward before whispering, "Be nice to Seto, okay? That boy cares about you more than you could imagine." She stood back, smiling again as if nothing happened before exiting into the hall, Harumi following silently, going over what she had just said.

_He cares about me more than I could imagine?..._

"Sorry to keep you waiting!" Tomadachi called as she opened the doors to the front room, Harumi awkwardly staggering out, unused to wearing shoes.

Seto was rather speechless at the new outfit, and was torn between questioning her on her sudden decision and complimenting her. He was still deciding when Harumi decided to act first,

"Um, er, Seto…So are you…Are you coming with me?" She looked away refusing to meet his eyes, nervously kicking her foot against the floor and twiddling her hair with her fingers.

"But Tomadachi-" Seto started before Tomadachi, like before, signalled for him to stop, a smile on her face,

"It's okay, Seto. I am…Just a robot. You should be with Harumi. I'm fine all by myself, I've lived like that for a while now, right?" she assured him with a kind smile, "But first, are you absolutely sure you want to leave, Harumi? You don't have a home, if I'm correct."

"That's true, but I don't mind travelling. I want to see if I can find out about my past." Harumi replied, her mind set on leaving (Hehe, I nearly accidentally typed 'her mind Seto on leaving).

"Alright. Are you leaving right away?"

"Yes. Thanks for the gift, and…For everything, Tomadachi." Harumi said with a smile.

"I'm coming with you." Seto called, standing up before running over to her, catching up quickly.

"Thanks."

"Goodbye!" Tomadachi called, waving her hand at the doorway as they exited into the wilderness of the forest, Harumi having no trouble with the thorns now that she was no longer barefoot. She replied with but a silent wave of the hand before disappearing from the robot's vision, to leave her by herself. Tomadachi looked down sadly before quietly closing the front door and retreating into her house, where she was truly alone now. She sighed before falling onto a sofa, staring at the plain ceiling in the silence now that there was no one else.

_So quiet….It's strange…I wonder how I could have lived happily before. It's…Horrible._

After a few more minutes of silence, her decision was made. _I'm going after them._

* * *

><p>"Y'know, after being in a house, being outside is actually <em>really <em>crap. I've just realised." Harumi remarked after almost tripping over yet another fallen tree branch, and cursing quite loudly.

"Well, it _was _your decision to leave." Seto sighed, staring at her sympathetically.

"True, you have a point there." She mumbled grumpily, frantically waving her hand away to try and shoo any insects which came her way, looking quite ridiculous in the process.

"So, where're we going now?" Seto asked, trying to ignore her crazy flailing. Without even noticing, it appeared _she _was the boss now. Before it seemed to be Seto's decision, but he now found himself asking her instead.

"Wherever, I guess. Let's just see where we end up, shall we?" Harumi smiled brightly before stopping, listening intently, she could have sworn she heard a familiar voice faintly in the background, "Hey, did you hear that?"

"Hear what?" Seto asked before the voice came again, only louder. It was almost loud enough to make out what it was saying.

"Harumi! Seto! Where are you? Please wait for me!"

"I know that voice!" Harumi realised, spinning around to face the source of the sound as Tomadachi appeared from the shadows, a determined expression on her face, which twisted into a relieved smile when she saw them, running over to them and wrapping her arms around them happily in reunion,

"I've changed my mind! I didn't realise how lonely it was until you left, so, um, if it's okay with you…Can I please come along?" Tomadachi released them shyly as they stared at her, speechless for a few seconds.

"Um, uh.." Harumi started after taking in the events, "Sure…I guess."

"Yay! I'm so happy!" Tomadachi explained, embracing her yet again.

"Um…Hi Tomadachi." Seto said awkwardly, lifting his hand into a slow wave.

"Hello, Seto!" She sang before embracing him next. Harumi glared, looking away with a 'hmph'. Tomadachi released him, noticing her reaction,

"Harumi, what's wrong?" She asked worriedly,

"Nothing." Harumi snapped back before beginning to walk again, "If you're coming with us, than hurry up. We haven't got all day."

"Okay!" Tomadachi replied in a determined tone before following her bouncily, followed by the surprised and silent Seto. "So where're we going?"

"**Somewhere." **

"Hehe, Where's that?"

"**Somewhere." **

"That…Doesn't answer my question."

"_**Somewhere." **_Harumi repeated with an icy glare that made Seto gulp.

"Um, Harumi, are you okay?" He asked nervously with a chuckle, receiving yet another freezing glare from her,

"**Yes, why wouldn't I be?" **She replied over her shoulder before turning to face forward, flicking her hair and picking up pace, Seto having difficulty keeping up with the two girls. Rather humiliating that a girl had more speed than him.

"Just asking." Seto mumbled, looking away, avoiding her eyes. What had gotten her so angry? He hadn't done anything. Maybe he'd said something?

The silence lingered between them as they travelled to nowhere in particular through the forest, and before long, a never ending sheet of black was stretched across the sky, the moon peeking out from some black clouds and few visible stars twinkling visibly.

The silence was interrupted by some sudden rustling in the bushes, a tiny bit louder than that of the slight breeze. The group stopped in their tracks, listening alertly for the source of the sound. Nothing more came. After exchanging glances nervously, they decided that whatever had made the noise was gone now.

They were, however, oblivious to the figure hiding in the shadows behind a tree, watching them intently and sneakily pursuing them.

"Well, well, well, look what we have here." He chuckled quietly to himself, holding up a small object which seemed to sparkle in the dim moonlight, Harumi's earing. "I think right about now is time to request a trade. Earring for teapot, rather fair. Although I can't guarantee they'll get the earring back.~"

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><p>CLIFFHANGER. And that's the end of that chapter. Hope you enjoyed. Please review, it motivates me *.*<p> 


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11**

**To all you readers…I am SO sorry, I'm not worthy as a ff writer T-T When was the last time I updated? ;^;**

**Disclaimer: I do NOT own Fragile Dreams or it's characters, for the ten billionth time, but I do own my OCs, so far including Harumi and Tomadachi.**

* * *

><p>"Does anyone else get the feeling that…Someone is watching us?" Seto asked nervously, breaking a long silence between them. Harumi looked up in concentration momentarily to see if she could feel anything before casually lowering her head and shrugging,<p>

"Nope." She replied, Seto looking down. Tomadachi decided that this was her cue,

"I could scan the area if it would make you more comfortable." She offered kindly, slightly raising her hand in the air. Harumi pounced on her before Seto even had the chance to reply. Strange. He could have sworn he saw her glance over her shoulder at him before doing so….

_Harumi…Standing between Tomadachi and me when we talk…I get it! _Seto lifted his head into a light-bulb moment; _She's still suspicious of her and so doesn't want me to get too close! That must be it!_

"Oh my god, Tomadachi, you can really do that?" Harumi shouted hyperly, a wide grin on her face. _Hmph. I feel rather uncomfortable when they talk…for some odd reason. I don't even know why I did that. Oh well. _"That's awesome!"

"Y-Yes." Tomadachi replied, chuckling awkwardly, "Thank you. Um, please let go? I'll preform a scan of the area." She asked the girl to un-attach herself as kindly as she could, the latter obediently doing so and watching with an excited face to see what happened.

Tomadachi hummed a carefree tune as she rolled up her left sleeve, which was making quite a bundle seeing as the material was quite thick and there were multiple layers. Seto and Harumi watched on in awe as, after her sleeve had successfully been pushed up to her shoulder, revealing a partly-bionic arm.

"Wooow." Harumi mused, "Tomadachi really is a robot!"

"This is…I suppose you could call it my heart. It's the source of my energy and commands and functions." Tomadachi explained, attempting to use as few words as possible on the two. With the state of the earth, after all, they didn't have much of a chance for education.

Seto nodded and Harumi followed his example, nodding quickly before returning to her close staring.

After some tinkering with the robotic feature on her arm, Tomadachi pulled out a small device with a click. It was some sort of metal circle with a single, tiny red light on the middle.

"I do hope it still works. With the…condition master has been in, he has been unable to perform any maintenance. It might be a little dusty." The robot went on, examining the gadget closely before gentle blowing on it, some specks of dust flying into the air.

"So, how does it, er, work?" Seto asked curiously, leaning in to get a closer look.

"You just press this button and then it'll create a map of the area surrounding us including any obstacles, including living creatures. It's not a miracle though, it can't scan _that _far." She sighed as she explained it before pushing the button. The group was all of a sudden engulfed in a bright scarlet light, although it seemed to end before it even started. Tomadachi smiled victoriously before inserting it back into her arm and closing her eyes.

"Mapping the area." She chorused in a slightly more robotic voice, eyes still firmly shut, un flinching. Before a few seconds had passed, her eyes all of a sudden flicked open and she confirmed, "Nothing unusual; so please calm down." And with that, she re-inserted the scanning tool, fixed her sleeve and that was that.  
>"So…We're looking for the silver haired girl, right?" Harumi asked after a short silence between them, a hint of curiosity in her bright voice, any trace of venom crushed by the previous excitement.<br>"Uh-huh." Was Seto's quick reply.  
>"That girl must be very important to you, Seto. Those things will remain a mystery to me." Tomadachi mused in a dream-like tone before sighing. No one could quite think of what to say next after that, so they found themselves once again aimlessly wandering around the forest in silence like before, the only audible sound that of the rustling leaves.<p>

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><p>Elsewhere, the mysterious boy from before was still lurking amongst the shadows; fortunately for him, the scanning device was not perfect, and with some tricks he was easily able to mask himself from its view. He was waiting for just the right moment to pounce.<p>

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><p>Harumi started to feel more and more uncomfortable as their journey progressed, that unnerving sensation of watchful eyes lingered around her, and she began to doubt Tomadachi's knowledge. Seto appeared no less carefree than ever, and their robotic companion lacked the ability to even feel uncomfortable, so that left the girl the only suspicious one among them.<p>

Soon, it appeared, that her suspicions had not gone to waste. Out of the blue, they were surprised when a figure casually strolled out of the trees, blocking their path. Harumi didn't have to look closely to see who it was, and she soon found herself pointing at him and shouting rudely,  
>"Hey, you're that ass from before!"<br>This exclamation triggered a spark of curiosity in Seto, _does she know this boy? Hold on…Didn't she say she met…Oh! _

"Calm down, I don't bite. Fancy a trade?" the boy smirked mischievously before searching his pockets and presenting a small, shiny object. It was unmistakeably Harumi's earring.  
>"H-Hey, that's mine!" Harumi pointed out stupidly, pointing at the small valuable, and exchanging glances with Seto, "He totally stole my earring!"<p>

"And now I'm giving it back, stupid. You have something of mine and I want it back right now, do you hear me?"

"I don't know what you're-"

"Did I say you could talk? No, I did not. Hey, you." he snapped in interruption before gesturing to Seto, "I think you know what I mean."  
>Seto stood still for a second before reluctantly digging in his backpack and slowly pulling out the golden teapot. Before anyone could say or do anything in protest, the boy had suddenly dashed forward with such speed that a cheetah would be put to shame, snatched the trinket from a bewildered Seto's hand and used some insanely super-human acrobatic trick to find himself perched amongst the branches of the tree, now in possession of both the teapot and earring, gazing at the latter with interest,<br>"Now that I look closely, this precious possession of yours is kinda nice…" he mused with infatuation before stuffing the earring into his pocket and clipping the teapot back into it's previous place, "Well, I lied. I'll be borrowing this for a bit longer. Tally-Ho!" and with that, he disappeared into the shadows, leaving a bewildered Tomadachi and Seto and a fuming Harumi, who soon burst into a tirade of angry complaints, full of venomous remarks like:  
>"See? I told you he was an asshole, didn't I? Did you see that?" "Oh, I'll wipe that smirk off of his face when I get a hold of him!" and "If I ever get the chance, I'll smack him so hard he'll cheek will be red for a month!"<br>Halfway through her angry rant, she paused to hear a muffled,  
>"You gotta catch me if you want this back~" In the distance.<br>"Well, if he wants to play tag, _**then I'll play tag." **_Harumi spat in a voice that, if sound could kill, would bring down a whole army. And with that, which appeared to be a triumphant declaration of war, she threateningly rolled up her sleeves and proceeded to march into the wilderness in pursuit of the cocky fellow, followed by her two speechless companions. Not that they could speak even if they wanted, as any chance they had to say something was interrupted by a horrifically detailed, blood-thirsty explanation of what Harumi was going to do to the boy, who had actually gained Seto's sympathy by now, when she found him.

And let me tell you now; you do not want to know what she planned on doing to him. Or, let me rephrase that as I don't have any idea what kind of people read my works and their preferences, I most certainly don't want to write what she planned on doing to him.

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><p>As they frantically ran around in a pointless wild goose chase, the one responsible for this insane game of tag was doing what he did best; writing extremely rude and insulting messages wherever he could; whether scratched onto a tree trunk with a sharp stone or messily scribbled onto something or other with marker, <strong>they were there somewhere. <strong> Harumi all too soon realised this also, and the childish but stinging comments she came across just fired her up more. Seto's attempts to calm the furious girl down were deemed a waste of time as she tore the branches and brambles in her path out of the way. The search seemed endless; before long even Harumi's spirit had taken huge damage, and she barely had the will to keep on going. Her angry tirades had all of a sudden transformed into whiny complaints such as, "I'm _hungry._" And "I'm _tired." _And the like.  
>Although Seto and Tomadachi knew better than to point out that she was the one who wanted to do this in the first place.<p>

After a quick rest, Harumi's spark seemed to miraculously reappear, and as she listened intently, her effort appeared to pay off when she heard the un mistakable sound of rustling in the bushes. Without one second of warning, she had pounced forward in a manner that would send a cat to shame and was upon the target before Seto could blink. Sure enough, the one behind the noise was indeed the target of their chase, and Harumi soon found herself wrestling with the thrashing boy, who wasn't about to give up defeat yet. Unfortunately for him, Harumi ended up victorious; somehow managing to wrap her arms around the enemy tightly enough to disable any movements.

He made a 'tch' sound as Seto and Tomadachi ran over to see the big fight.  
>"Harumi, you caught him!" Tomadachi sang in congratulation; Seto smiling in agreement at her achievement. The boy, however, had other plans. Noticing Harumi was distracted by her praise, he didn't waste the chance to squirm out of her grasp and run away at the speed of light. The three stood there, frozen in shock at what had just happened as they heard him call, in the distance now,<br>"The name's crow and don't you forget; I'm not giving up that easily!" followed by a silence which was all too soon interrupted by a furious "WHAT!" from Harumi and a disappointed sigh from the other two.

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><p><strong>And, my friends, the chapter ends there :{D. If I overcome the dreaded procrastination, there MIGHT, I repeat MIGHT be another update tomorrow night, but don't get your hopes up.<strong>


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter 12**

**Hello, everyone! Sadly, I did not overcome the dreaded procrastination and therefore failed to get an updated up the night following the release of the eleventh chapter, but fear not, because there is an update now! …Talking like this makes me look stupid ._. Oh, and just so you know, there won't be an update in a while as I am visiting Ireland for around 4-5 days **

**Disclaimer: Fragile Dreams and it's character belong to…Someone other than me, but my OCs, however, **_**do **_**belong to me! **

The tirades of burning rage and words that do not belong in a T rated fan fiction following the cheeky boy's swift escape was without a doubt the angriest they'd seen the girl. Seto and Tomadachi found themselves helpless with her, and so ended up obediently listening to her rants silently, exchanging nervous glances. The night, albeit slowly was still passing, and although energy inside Harumi still burned proudly, her companions were beginning to feel rather drained.  
>Although wondering, Seto wasn't going to ask why she suddenly seemed so concerned for the tiny piece of jewellery that she had before abandoned with the drop of a hat; or perhaps, it was not the jewellery she was after but she was doing this out of pure determination to win. Had he not been as calm a person as he was, Seto admitted in his thoughts that with the boy's attitude, he would have probably been the same.<br>"When I find that little piece of crap with legs, I swear, I will gouge out his eyes, sprinkle salt in the sockets and make him eat them!" Was one of the many violent declarations escaping Harumi's mouth as they travelled.

Apparently, though, they were not aware that they and the boy were not the only ones in that forest…There were also the bats, badgers, foxes and any other animals that happened to live in forests! …Nah, Joke, there was…Something else too. (Dun…dun…DUUUUN)

The group was far too distracted by Harumi to recognize the unnerving feeling of eyes on their backs, watching them from amongst the bushes. Had Harumi not been so loud the mysterious sound of an ominous breeze would have been audible accompanied by the gentle sound of rustling leaves. Meanwhile, Crow was once again doing his job, quite well, too. How he managed to write and run at the same time I do not know, but the messages the team found indicated that that was the case. More insulting and long story short _immature _messages were carved into various tree trunks. Although Harumi had no chance to read them as something caught her eye in the background. Something…Moving?  
>"S-Seto, Tomadachi, there's something moving!" She alerted the team in alarm, frantically pointing to amongst the bushes where she thought she'd seen something. Tomadachi's attention immediately fixed on the bush, her eyebrows furrowed in concern. Now that the distractions had disappeared, they could clearly sense the ominous presence of another. Seto's determination was focused elsewhere though, he stared at Harumi, eyebrows also furrowed, <em>How come she's always the one who notices first? <em>He though before his eyes moved to the shadows. Something…Something was emerging from them!  
>The trio watched in pure horror as the horrific creature forced it's way, albeit slowly through the branches, the latter snapping as it floated out of the shadows. It appeared to be…A mask? The most horrifying mask they had ever seen, more like! Its face looked like it was made purely to creep them out, and the strange red bubble-like…things streaming out from its back were just weird. A strange sound similar to that of heavy, but somehow calm breathing filled the air as it closed in on them…Slowly.<br>"What…What is that?" Seto asked in panic, taking multiple steps backward, the others following his example.  
>"That spirit is strong. We're helpless against it; without a weapon, or perhaps even with a weapon, we're not strong enough." Tomadachi explained gravely. The following strike of speed from the monster they were not expecting; in just a manner of seconds it had suddenly sprung forward with such a strike of power that had they been hit directly, they would have ended up with fatal injuries. Fortunately, however, as a robot Tomadachi had lightning fast reflexes and successfully saved both her and her friends from the attack with a brave leap forward, knocking them out of the way.<br>The strange entity showed no annoyance at their lucky escape; it seemed as though all emotion had been deprived of the creature, leaving it an empty shell with nothing but aggression; perhaps, a killing machine?  
>With no Hindrance, the beast was quickly on the groups tail again, the latter having broken into a run after scrambling to their feet without a single second thought. It's movements were strange, it appeared to be moving neither quickly or slowing, nonetheless, it was gaining on them with worrying speed.<br>After hours of searching for the troublemaking boy, exhaust had already swept over them, and the sleep deprivation surely didn't help.  
>Harumi felt just about ready to collapse any minute, the overwhelming fear that flowed through her body right now just served to weaken her; her heart was beating at an alarming rate and she was gasping for breath as she ran. While Tomadachi showed no feeling of tiredness, her eyebrows remained firmly furrowed as they ran; perhaps a monster like that was even beyond her power, no, she thought again, it was most likely beyond her power.<p>

Only after running for a few more minutes did they realise that it had become unusually quiet…Tomadachi speechlessly signalled for them to stop, and Harumi collapsed onto the forest floor, face flushed and breaths heavy whilst Seto tiredly leaned on his knees. The only audible sound was their breathing, accompanied by the faint night time breeze.  
>"I think it's gone." Tomadachi alerted them calmly, listening intently, her eyes flicking from shadow to shadow. The ghostly breeze that seemed to follow it was no longer, which just confirmed its absence.<p>

"That's….A relief." Harumi commented in between breaths, slowly closing her eyes as she calmed down, and her breathing began to steady considerably. Seto was almost completely recovered already, standing up straight and looking around cautiously,

"What was that? I haven't seen anything like it." He remarked in question, awaiting an answer from the robot, who was expected to know everything.

"I've ever seen one before, but it's powerful; more so than anything else we've seen. I'd rather avoid it." She confirmed in a grave tone, staring into the trees as she did so. Harumi was weakly staggering to her feet as she said this, tiredly announcing;

"To hell with that asshole. Y'know what, he can have my earring. I don't care anymore."

"Harumi, is it really necessary to talk like that?" Seto sighed quietly,

"What are you, my mother?" Harumi protested grumpily before stretching casually and proceeding to march through the forest, it seemed she had claimed the role as leader of the group. The peace did not last long, though, as before they had been walking for half an hour, the silence between them was interrupted by a sudden ear-popping yell of fear. A familiar voice.  
>"Is it just me or does that sound like-"<p>

"Crow." Tomadachi confirmed for Harumi, nodding in agreement. "Sounds to me like he's being attacked."

"I'm not helping him." Harumi snapped quickly, folding her arms- nose in the air- barely giving the robot a chance to finish her sentence.  
>"But he could be seriously hurt." Seto protested in concern, whether a troublemaker or a kind person, at this point all life was important to him; he wasn't about to let someone who may be one of the only people they were going to come across die simply like that.<br>"I refuse. He's a sly one; if we help him he'll just run off again or something." Harumi sighed knowingly in distrust.  
>"And? I don't think he's a bad person. Aren't you just as bad if you simply leave him be that way?"<br>Ouch. Harumi gritted her teeth at this statement; that stung. Maybe…It wouldn't hurt to…  
>"Fine, Seto." She gave in before glaring at him, "But if he gets clever after we save him, I'll kill him myself."<br>And with that, they set off to track the boy, picking up pace. Hopefully, it wasn't too late. _I'm not going to turn out the bad guy; if I don't go and he gets killed, it'll be my fault. I don't want to live with that…Plus…Maybe he isn't so bad…_Harumi thought to herself as she put all of her remaining energy; if any; into running and reaching him as fast as possible.  
>Tomadachi just followed silently in a go-with-the-flow manner, choosing to watch and observe rather than speak. <em>This Seto boy…He'll forever remain a mystery to me. <em>She smiled warmly to herself.

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><p>Elsewhere, being caught by the group was the last thing Crow was worrying about; with that creepily mutated looking monstrosity of a mask on his tail? I don't think they even crossed his mind. He was betting his life on his speed, apparently the creature could be quite fast if it wanted to. The frightened boy was tearing through the vines and bushes ferociously, glancing over his back in alarm every few seconds, as much as he hated to admit it, the mask was gaining on him; even at full speed, it seemed it was going to catch up eventually. He gulped, a weak grin on his face, <em>I suppose I at least had a good time. <em>He thought to himself, rummaging in his pocket for the earring as he ran before pulling it out and staring at it in fascination. It was quite a splendid piece of jewellery; it had a nice glitter to it.  
>Now was not the time to be worrying about that, though, quite the contrary; the distraction caused the unfortunate boy to trip over a stray tree root and fall quite painfully onto the forest floor, dead, dry leaves and twigs crunching under his weight. He was left helpless, with no option but to stare in fear and await death as he stared at the mask in pure horror. It was advancing towards him, and the killing intent in the air was enough to send shivers down his spine.<p>

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><p>…<p>

**Yay for cliff hangers! And that, my friends, is the end of that chapter –insert epic face here- yeah hope you enjoyed bla bla yeah bla bla see ya in a week~**


	13. Chapter 13

**Hello people Sorry, I kinda haven't updated in a while. I'm back from Ireland though, so there should be more chapters on the way~ Thank you very much to anyone who is reading this story still, you make me very happy! **

**Disclaimer: I don't own Fragile Dreams or its characters, but I do own Tomadachi and Harumi.**

"I hope we aren't too late." Seto said in anxiety as they trudged through the forest brambles, which were growing madly out of control, constricting all of the rough tree trunks and curling in every direction, scattered over the forest floor. Where the brambles were absent in this especially overgrown part of the huge, never-ending- or so it seemed- forest, they had been replaced by unpleasant looking weeds and dead leaves. Every single step they took resulted in a loud crunch, snap or rustle that could be heard from ages away, giving away any chance of a surprise attack and proving their efforts at keeping quiet and swiftly sneaking through the forest with agility useless.

If humans had ever occupied this area, not a single trace remained of their existence; it was as if they had never existed. Whilst Harumi, Seto and Tomadachi found the place harsh and uncomfortable, it was brimming with wildlife. Even though their walk was short, many rustles other than their own were audible and nocturnal birds sang loudly in a night-time chorus.

They were growing worried at the silence that followed the cry of fear few minutes earlier; while he seemed like a cheeky brat, there weren't enough people left to be picky, and maybe he wasn't so bad when you got to know him. Seto just hoped that horrid mask hadn't already injured him, or worse.  
>"These thorns are even worse than the ones outside Tomadachi's house! How are we gonna get anywhere with them?" Harumi complained as the thorns tore at her stockings and scratched her shoes, which she was finally starting to get glad she had. Walking through this jungle of brambles barefoot would be a living nightmare; a death sentence in her eyes.<br>"I'm sorry." The mentioned robot apologized for a reason which the other two didn't know, she just felt she should apologize for not being able to help them or speed up the process of moving through the plants.  
>"Look. What's that?" Seto asked, squinting as he tried to find the quick shine of something reflecting off of moonlight from the corner of his eye. Harumi and Tomadachi paused as he dug around in the brambles, cutting his hand quite badly in the process. It proved worth it though, as when he stood up straight again he was holding a rusted dagger. He didn't even want to think about why it was there in the first place, but it could definitely prove useful.<p>

Harumi didn't know whether to get excited over the discovery or freak out over his bleeding hands, and decided on the latter.  
>"Seto, you have to be careful! If you're cuts get infected there's nothing much we can do!" she lectured him in concern.<br>"Sorry." He replied gently, "But I didn't get it for nothing; maybe it's sharp enough to cut through the vines."  
>Unfortunately, he was disappointed to find that he couldn't do much with the weapon; not only was it small, but time had taken its toll on the blade, and it could barely even cut brambles. The only way he found made any progress was slashing it around like a madman, hacking away at any brambles in his path with as much strength as he could muster, firmly having instructed the other two to stay behind him out of the way to avoid getting accidently cut.<p>

It wasn't long before they could hear the familiar ghostly breeze of the spirit and they knew they were getting close. The number of brambles, though slowly, was beginning to lower as they progressed, and they found they could travel with much more speed now.

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><p>Crow could not express the relief he felt when he heard them rustling through the bushes, seconds after he had tripped. It was unmistakeably the sound of humans on their way, to his rescue, at least he hoped. Fortunately for him, he was not the only one to notice the presence of others, as the monster's attention creeped away from him and onto the approaching trio. It turned around slowly, listening intently.<br>Crow could only hope it's attention stayed on them. It wasn't long before the sound of quick paced running became louder and they appeared out of the shadows. Apparently, they had been prepared for what they saw, because they immediately jumped into action.  
>Seto gulped, staring at the monster for a fraction of a second before leaping forward with his knife. He wasn't going to be a coward, if Tomadachi-who had decided it was worth a shot with her unarmed combat skill- could attack it, then so could he. Whether or not the swipes of his weapon did any damage on the creature he did not know; it didn't appear to flinch at his attacks and reacted in much the same way to Tomadachi's; was there no way to stop it?<br>Crow and Harumi could do nothing but watch as they fought; Crow was busy observing and Harumi was pondering what she should do. If she tried to fight she would just get in the way and end up badly injured which would prove a hindrance to the rest of them, but she didn't want them to get the idea she was useless! "Think Harumi, think!" She hissed to herself before something came to mind. _Oh, what the hell. _She thought before dashing past the battle between her companions and the best and over to Crow, who was still on the ground.  
>"Here." She mumbled as she reluctantly held out her hand to help him up, refusing to smile at him. She was still worried about her friends, and of course still held a grudge against him for being such a little asshole. Apparently, he knew better than to make a nasty comment or act like a cocky fool in a situation like this, and accepted her offer quite gladly. Harumi quickly pulled her hand away once he was on his feet, glaring at him as she spitefully wiped her hand on her clothes as if having touched something unpleasant. Crow scowled before saying a forced<br>"Thanks." Through his teeth. Harumi didn't bother replying, returning her eyes to the fight. The beast showed no signs of injury, but the fatigue was beginning to show on Seto. While he had not received any cuts, he was covered in bruises. It appeared the mask's fighting style was that of simply lunging forward and bashing any enemies than actually piercing the skin.  
>The fight seemed to go on for ages; was this creature invincible or something? They were certainly starting to think so when, all of a sudden out of a blue the creature started to disintegrate into black particles. Soon not a trace of it remained, and even the eerie breeze had disappeared.<br>"Is it-?" Seto began, waiting for Tomadachi to finish his question.  
>"Gone." She nodded, "I think we defeated it. How strange; most beings show pain or fatigue before dying."<p>

Before anyone could speak, they were all surprised when Harumi leapt forward, wrapping her arms tightly around Crow's torso. Before he could question her actions, she answered for him,  
>"There's no way I'm letting you run away again! Hand over the earring!" she demanded angrily before violently shaking him. Seto sighed, for a second he believed she had intended this as an act of affection. Not that it bothered him, of course…<br>Apparently, Crow had no plans to escape this time, rather than flailing around like a lunatic as he had beforehand, he instead just smiled in defeat,  
>"Okay, okay. I guess you all win this time. I'll give it back, so calm down, okay?" he sighed, wriggling out of Harumi's grip, which had loosened, before rummaging in his pocket. They all stared as he kept searching before frowning and searching his other pockets; they seemed quite plentiful on his outfit. "Uh, hold on a second. Must be in this one." He told them awkwardly as he searched yet another on, with no results. Suddenly, he remembered. While he was admiring it and he fell, he must have dropped it! "Oh. Looks like I lost it." He announced to Harumi's rage, although the grin on his face didn't budge, "I guess you'll have to go look for it."<br>"You did that on purpose, didn't you! Hey answer me!" she roared, a number of birds waking and flying away at her loud exclamation, "You little- go find it now! You lost it, you find it!"

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><p>Apparently, the earring was long gone. Even after an hour of searching, their efforts proved in vain and not one earring was found, although Harumi didn't let them stop until the sun eventually came up and they collapsed from exhaustion. She was quite sure she hated that boy by now; it was obviously in his nature to be a bully. An annoying bully at that. But he <em>did <em> surrender after all. Had he been all bad he would have probably ignored their act of kindness and ran away. Maybe he wasn't so bad.


	14. Chapter 14

**Okay, sorry for not updating in a while I actually wrote this chapter already, but after reading over it and realising how crappy it was I decided to rewrite it XD **

**Disclaimer: I don't own Fragile Dreams or it's wonderful characters, but I own Tomadachi and Harumi.**

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><p>How long had it been since they entered this forest? A week, at least, it had to be. It almost seemed like they'd been amongst the trees forever, in the dim light with only a scarce amount of sunlight streaming through the gaps in the leaves, perhaps created by peckish insects or just the breeze, which was quite slow and steady today, only a slight tickle on their skin as they stepped out into the bright light, overcome with relief. They were finally outside of the forest, in the sunshine. It was finally safe enough to let any worries of a hidden enemy pouncing out of the shadows slip.<br>The first thing Harumi said was "Yes!" before she proceeded to do a spastic little happy dance, frantically clapping her hands. Seto and Tomadachi just stared at their surroundings after silent sighs of relief had escaped their mouths.  
>It had been, what, three days since they had both rescued and said their goodbyes to Crow. He claimed he was looking for a certain place and had to get going if he wanted to find it before taking off, living them with little information on him other than his name. While Tomadachi had her suspicions, in the little time they spent together Harumi started to warm up to him. He only stayed with them until nightfall, but she had enough time to see his true personality, which was more humorous than before.<br>Anyway, back to the surrounding area. To their amazement, they had found themselves standing before a small, abandoned town. There were few buildings still standing, but a considerable amount of rubble scattered around suggested that it used to be a lot bigger.

Once Harumi had calmed down to take a look herself, they started to talk. Of course the first thing that came to mind was the high possibility of useful items stored away in the houses. Including food, they were reminded by their growling stomachs.  
>"So, which house do you want to search first?" Harumi asked casually after their planning.<br>"The closest one, I guess." Was Seto's answer as he glanced at the said building, which appeared to be a red-brick one-story house which was just about barely standing, with every window smashed or terribly cracked and most of the roof-tiles having slid off, smashed on the ground.  
>"We would probably gather at a faster pace if we split up," Tomadachi suggested wisely to Harumi's protest,<br>"Hell no! There's no way I'm going alone." She argued, "I-It's not like I'm scared or anything, it's just…"  
>"I agree with Harumi. It's dangerous; we don't know what's hiding in the shadows." Seto sided with her immediately, not certain he wanted to be alone either.<br>"Let me finish. I already know that," Tomadachi started with a sigh, "I'll go alone and you two should go together. I'm quite capable by myself, trust me."

And it was agreed. There was no more hesitation before Tomadachi left to search the building next door to the pair's target, and they were left alone. Seto figured he should be able to defend himself against any malicious entities with the rusty old knife he had before discovered, but it was Harumi who was worried about. She couldn't be left unarmed, so he silently handed her the first stick he found silently, there was no explanation needed.  
>Now that they were both armed, they approached the house. The cloud of dust that hit them like a bullet as soon as they opened the door was to be expected but still ended up a shock as they coughed violently. After a long time of vacancy, the whole place reeked and every surface was coated in a thick layer of dust and grime. The most they could see before the dust started to get into their eyes and they were forced to close the door were a few pieces of broken furniture.<p>

"I wasn't…" Harumi said between coughs, "Expecting it to be that..." –cough- "Bad!"  
>Seto nodded in agreement after finding he too was gasping for breath. Just a few seconds exposed to that unclean air was enough to make his throat dry and sore. "I hope Tomadachi is okay." He said in concern once he had recovered enough to speak without coughing for a few seconds.<br>"She's a robot, she'll be fine. I doubt she even has lungs." Harumi assured him, her tone slightly insulting to the robot, although it was true. She kind of regretted saying that after. Seto wasn't the only one who pretty much thought of the girl as a human. For a robot, she was just so…Human-like. It was even like she had real emotions, everything.  
>Not replying to Harumi's reassurances, he sighed, "What should we do now?"<br>Harumi thought for a second before shrugging and leaning against the wall of the building, "Wait for Tomadachi, I guess."  
>So they did. Before a few minutes had passed they found themselves basking in the warm sun in relaxation, nothing else to do but watch the fluffy clouds go by. The only conversation they shared while they waited mainly consisted of things like "Hey, is it just me or does that cloud look like a bunny rabbit?" or "She sure is taking a while."<br>They were both relieved when she finally returned, carrying a small bundle of items wrapped in a thin cotton blanket. Most colour had faded away but you could vaguely make out a tint of red. She didn't waste any time in showing us her findings. Some most likely stale tins of tuna, some ugly clothes mostly eaten away by moths and some bottled water. She couldn't have really carried more, even as a robot there were boundaries.  
>"It's more than enough." Seto thanked her, sitting up to sort out the items. It was already agreed that he was going to carry them as the only person among them with bags. Once the items were safely stowed away, Harumi started to explain why they were empty-handed.<br>"The amount of dust in there was unbelievable! I couldn't breathe at all, I seriously thought I was gonna die!" She exclaimed dramatically. Seto didn't point out that she was hugely exaggerating.  
>"Maybe that place be better…It's large enough, the air should be cleaner." Tomadachi suggested, pointing to a distant building, a store. Harumi happily agreed as Seto nodded and they set off to the building. As they got closer, they started to get a better picture of it. There was nothing special about its shape, the typical large store, flat walls, flat roof, no real eye-catching designs worth mentioning.<br>Tomadachi was right; to their relief the inside was far less dusty. The most the dust in here could do was make them sneeze every now and then. They kept the splitting up plan, and Tomadachi left into a separate isle, engulfed by the darkness. There were no windows in the building and any lights had broken or run out already. Luckily, Seto had a flashlight buried in one of his bags so they could see well enough. The supermarket was like the cave of wonders to them, even if it was stale, the amount of foods stacked on the shelves was overwhelming after starving for days. They had no time to be picky, they soon found themselves hastily stuffing everything they could get their hands on into a random backpack they had found, moving onto a new one once that was full. They were far too busy excitedly grabbing random foods to notice watchful eyes on their backs. They weren't alone in that store; someone else was there, someone who wasn't Tomadachi.

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><p><strong>I'll have to end it there ^^ Sorry for the short chapter but it's almost Half past 4 AM and I'm seriously tired XD <strong>


	15. Chapter 15

**Uhh, Hi…Sorry, I got writers block for a while ;^; I seriously need to update more . …Well, sorry, anyway, I've been busy…****playing Harvest Moon…**

**Disclaimer: Bla bla I don't own Fragile dreams bla bla but I do own my OCS kthxbai.**

Harumi stared at the chaotic pile of useful items before her, her lips curved proudly into a smug smirk as her eyes wandered across their collection. Okay, so maybe they'd overdone it a tad bit, but at least they wouldn't be hungry for a while. Rather than pondering how on earth they were expected to carry the ample pile of goods like her companion, Harumi revelled in the fact that the bulging heap of food was almost as tall as herself.

If one was painting, unless they were equipped with patience superior to that of a saint, they would without a doubt be unable to capture every detail of the pile accurately. There was such a large variety of colour in those packets that it almost hurt to look at, for any normal person, that is. It was almost impressive how long the excited girl's eyes could remain glued firmly to the scrambled mess of colour. Seto just stared at her absent mindedly, attempting to figure out if there was in fact a possible way to carry all of the items. He silently shook his head to himself; they'd have to ditch at least half of it before they even thought of carrying it, even if the items were divided between them.

He frowned when he thought how Harumi would react to his plan. Knowing her, she'd probably expect him to think of a way. He felt slightly pressured with all these expectations shoved onto him. So far he had been expected to be the weapon, brain and luggage-carrier of the group…It was frustrating. At least Tomadachi could help. Speaking of Tomadachi…He widened his eyes when the realisation hit him. If Tomadachi was also collecting things, then that means they had even more to carry? He stared at the pile for a second, his eye twitching momentarily before he just sighed and lifelessly furrowed his eyebrows.

They had already pretty much emptied the shelves in their range, which was frightening considering the speed they'd done it at. Well, more specifically the speed Harumi did it at. Seto grabbed items off the shelf at a calm, steady pace whilst his companion frantically attacked them crazily.  
>"Hey, Se-to! When are we going to start eating all of this? I'm starving!" the girl interrupted his thoughts with her loud, bubbly exclamation, reaching her arms into the air in a stretch before eyeing the food with a hungry shimmer in her eyes.<br>"Um, now, I suppose." He smiled nervously as she literally pounced onto the food in a cat-like manner…With her appetite, the amount would surely be decreased by a considerable amount. Not that that would make it noticeably easier to manage…Oh well. The boy sat down on the floor and tentatively helped himself to a packet of biscuits from the load. The material crackled noisily in his hand. It would be nice to let go and be carefree like Harumi for once, he thought to himself as he opened it and proceeded to dig in.

One would have called it peaceful, if it hadn't been practically raining discarded food wrapping. Harumi was gnawing through the snacks like a shredder out of control, lazily tossing the remains into the air around them. By the time she finally managed to keep the hunger at bay, the floor around them was completely littered.

And that's when they heard the voice.

"…You're so loud." It sounded like the voice of a young child, whether it was male or female was unfathomable, but it had a warm calm to it and while ever letter of the word was precisely pronounced, it had a gentle touch to it.

Seto quickly stood up with the presence of another, shining his flashlight in every shadow in search. He had a hunch that whoever it was had no hostile intentions, but it was always best to be safe with the state of the world. As that saying goes, you cannot judge a book by its cover; especially not a voice. Seto was about to ask who had spoken when Harumi started choking on whatever she had been chewing. He mentally face-palmed as he knelt down next to her and patted her on the back while the girl coughed and spluttered.

"Did I surprise you…?" the voice repeated again. The deadpan words echoed mysteriously, resonating on the walls of the shop. Of course once recovered Harumi's first action was to lecture whoever was speaking. Typical of her.

"Why you-! Who the hell are you! Surprising me like that! I'm going to kill you!" She yelled with hostility before Seto covered her mouth, muffling her exclamations.

"Please forgive her. Could you please come out from wherever you're hiding?" Seto asked kindly before Harumi slapped his hand away, gasping for breath.

"Why you-!" she started in complaint before Seto interrupted her with a,

"Shh. There's no need to pick fights." He smiled before returning his attention to whomever it was that had started all of this. Harumi recomposed herself immediately with a small frown. She respected the way Seto handled things so calmly greatly. When faced with situations like this she always ended up losing her temper and messing up. She was so immature, something about herself that she loathed with a bitter passion.

Maybe those were the side effects of being in a coma for however long it had been. Perhaps she still had the mentality of whatever age she was when she fell into the slumber? She wondered how old she was in the first place. She couldn't be much older or younger than Seto, or at least she hoped. What if it turned out she was, like, twenty years old and just looked young? That would be horrible…She shook her head when she realised she was getting lost in thought.

"Why are you here?" The voice had a bitter edge that had been absent before, but it steel managed to maintain the cool. Whoever was speaking appeared to be very nearly devoid of emotion. They'd probably been alone for a very long time…Seto could relate to that. Maybe if he hadn't met his friends then he'd have ended up that way, too.

It was the silver haired girl that sparked his determination to survive. Just knowing someone else was out there, breathing the same air as him was enough to keep him going. He had endured many hardships, but it had finally paid off. Maybe he'd never have the chance to thank her, whoever she was, but his gratefulness was brimming to the point of overflowing.

"I'm sorry. Are we disturbing you?" Seto asked quietly. Seto pursed her lips. She had to remain calm, too.

"We aren't here to harm you, I promise." She called calmly with a proud smile. She felt like she'd grown up a little bit now.

"I believe you." the bitterness had disappeared so abruptly that it almost shocked them. How could they have gained their trust so easily? Before they even had a chance to ask, the speaker showed themselves voluntarily. It was to be expected, but it still sent chills up Harumi's spine and shivers through her body. It was a ghost. And they still couldn't tell if it was a girl or a boy, which was kind of awkward. The spirit had a babyish round face but their eyes were sharp and intelligent, thought and empty black. Near-Shoulder length, unkempt wheat coloured hair hung in curtains around their face and stuck in many directions.

"It's nice to meet you, um-"  
>"Are you a girl or a boy?" Harumi asked tactlessly with an idiotic grin, having overcome her momentary fear. Another mental face palm in the case of Seto. He was there trying to make friends and she'd just gone and asked the poor spirits gender. The poor thing's ego was probably scarred forever. At least, he thought, because that was apparently a mistake. Okay, who stole this kid's emotions? They need them back.<p>

"…I'm a boy." He replied vacantly. This was surprising, which Harumi clearly expressed when her jaw dropped. Though you could not make any definite guesses without uncertainty, he just seemed so feminine. I suppose that was something that came with being a child, though. How old was he? Nine? Ten?

"A-And I'm a girl!" Harumi blurted out awkwardly before mentally slapping herself across the face. Why did she just point out something so obvious? And why was a nine year old acting more mature than her? …The bastard's more mature than her! She burned red with both anger and embarrassment. How she could hate people for reasons as random as that she did not know, but she did.

"…I see."

"What do you mean, 'I see'? Is it not clear?" Harumi snapped, holding up her fist triumphantly.

"Why are you so angry? You should get a hold of yourself. I won't allow disruptive people in my residence." The ghost boy said patronizingly before allowing a small smirk.

"Hey, don't lecture me, kid. How old are you anyway?" Harumi spat with a pout. Seto was just standing there awkwardly. He almost thought she'd changed and matured a bit…Apparently not. Oh well. Harumi is Harumi and that's not ever going to change.

"I do not know. It's been a long time since I died." The boy explained vacantly. His voice was different again, neither bitter nor smug…sad? Or uncomfortable. That's to be expected, though. Harumi had almost forgotten that the life of the person she was conversing with had already come to an end. Her eyebrows relaxed before slanting upwards apologetically.  
>He must have died at such a young age…It was sad. It always is when a life comes to a stop, whether it's of an elderly woman or a little boy, it always brings sorrow.<p>

"I see…So, Um, what's your name?" Seto asked with a forced smile. He was having similar thoughts to Harumi, how sad it was. And how on earth had he died? An accident, maybe? It was a likely chance that he'd died prior to the demise of a majority of the population, the doomed apocalypse. How had he reacted to the post-apocalyptic land? He must have watched helplessly as his relatives and friends perished…

"My name is Hajime…You are curious about me, aren't you?...I can tell when people are lying…And I…Was murdered.


End file.
